Working In Nursing

[whooliggen]

High,

My sister is graduating from her child nursing course (2 years at Uni in Brighton) next May and would love to put her new found skills to good use here in Thailand. She has asked me to make some enquiries on her behalf and here seemed like a good place to ask.

So maybe someone here is working in the nursing profession or knows the ropes in regard to foreign nurses finding employment in Thailand. Money wouldn't really be a factor, as gaining "on the job" experience is most definitely the motivating factor. She is not sure even whether she would be qualified to work here without at least some "practical experience in the UK" after her graduation, so maybe someone could shed some light on that too.

Any feedback gratefully received as ever.

All the best and only the best of health to you all,

W.

[GuestHouse]

I used to be a volunteer hospital visitor in Thailand, visiting foreigners who had landed in hospital but without friends or family nearby the help out.

I've visited dozens of international hospitals and quite a few Thai state hospitals, I've only ever come across one foreign nurse, she was working in the BKK Pattaya Hostpital in what was basically customer relations.

Aside from visa/work permit issues I think the big obsticle would be language and hence the reasoning behind the nurse I met being given customer (foreigner) relations work.

[whooliggen]

Thanks GuestHouse!

Interesting you mention the BKK (Pattaya) Hospital as I am an out patient at the Bangkok Hospital and was going to make some enquiries there next time I visited - just wasn't sure if there was a sizeable enough expat base to warrant a speciality child nurse? I can definitely see how language may be a prohibiting factor as well.

Maybe the charitable direction as opposed to the profit based one may be the best avenue??

[chatette]

Hi W, Only nurses registered in Thailand are able to work as such here, and to be so they must be pass the local exam, in Thai. It's the same throughout the medical profession, and pretty much the same throughout the world. That's why you will find foreign-registered nurses working in some sort of patient-support role, rather than being involved in direct nursing care.

[Briggsy]

Hi W, Only nurses registered in Thailand are able to work as such here, and to be so they must be pass the local exam, in Thai. It's the same throughout the medical profession, and pretty much the same throughout the world. That's why you will find foreign-registered nurses working in some sort of patient-support role, rather than being involved in direct nursing care.

Indeed, foreigners are effectively proscribed from working as nurses in Thailand. My friend who is a highly qualified ICU nurse found it is impossible to work in Thailand. Unpaid voluntary work is always possible I suppose.

[Neeranam]

My sister worked for the WHO in Chula Hospital for a year.

She was a physiotherapist.

[leisurely]

I was a nurse in England before we started our round the world tour......when I tried to find out about nursing here, I worked out that once I had paid to travel to a hospital, worked 6 days and paid tax it just wasn't worth it. I would end up with less than I pay our maid.

[Sheryl]

As noted above, paid employment as a nurse is a no go. Volunteering would be the only possible route and even then is not going to involve much in the way of skilled nursing care -- more like charitable work in which her training will be an asset, i.e. working with children in orphanages or with AIDs patients.

Speaking as a nurse with some 30 years experience, I have to say that immediately upon graduation a nurse does not yet have much to offer skill-wise and that the priority is getting hands on skilled nursing experience, which is 1) not possible in Thailand and 2) best obtained in a setting where one's natuive language is spoken. It takes a few years at least to become clinically competent. Don't mean to sound discouraging but it's a fact.

If she's planning on coming to Thailand anyhow and just wants to give some service while here, that's one thing, but if she is looking for experience using her professional training, she would best do that at home first.