The province is making it easier and faster for nurses from the U.S. to get registered in B.C., in an effort to bringĀ more health-care workers north.Ā
During a news conference on Monday, Premier David EbyĀ said “uncertainty” related to U.S. President Donald Trump and his administration creates anĀ “opportunity” for the province to recruit much-needed doctors and nurses.Ā
Eby said American health workers thinking about coming to B.C.Ā will be valued, respected and will have the opportunity to care for people based on what they need, not on their earnings.Ā
“You’ll be part of building healthy communities in the best place on earth, and you are very welcome here,” he said.Ā
“President Trump’s loss is British Columbia’s gain.”
American nurses can apply to the B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives without first going through a third-party assessment organization.Ā The province says collaboration with counterparts from the United States means the B.C. college can now access a database to review the education, exam results, employment and registration history of nurses who apply.Ā
Eby said the new process for registeringĀ American nurses now takes just a few days, as opposed to waiting months to be able to work.Ā
Premier David Eby is touting the provinceā€™s work recruiting U.S.-trained doctors and nurses to B.C., in an effort to address the health-care worker shortage. CBCā€™s Katie DeRosa talked to one nurse who is starting the journey to move here.
Since launching its new process for U.S. nurses in early April, 177 peopleĀ have applied to work in B.C. and 113 have received their registrations to practice, Eby added. The province said applications from U.S.-trained nurses are up 127 per cent.Ā
A personal decision shaped by politics
For Rachael Smith-Taylor, a nurse from Belton, Texas, the opportunity in B.C. is personally significant.
“I’m a wife in a same-sex marriage needing to get out of a red state,” she said in an interview with CBC News.
She and her wife, Lisa, also a nurse, live in Texas with their three children. Smith-Taylor says the re-election of Donald Trump made them start seriously considering leaving the U.S., concerned about their family’s safety.
“We needed to get out of the red state, or thatĀ thought process anyway, to feel safe and move forward,” she said.Ā
Last month, they visited Nanaimo after seeing a viral TikTok video by Canadian marketing professional Tod Maffin encouraging Americans to check out the city. The warm welcome they received left an impression.
“The experience reinforced my aspiration to contribute to Canada’s health-care system,” she said.
They toured Nanaimo Regional General Hospital and learned moreĀ about the province’s effort to fast-track the process for American nurses and doctors to work here.
Now, they’re thinking of making itĀ permanent.
“It seems a lot less daunting to know that they’re so willing and have the capabilities of helping us for those of us who want to leave and get out of this political unrest,” she said.
She says she is pursuing registration as a nurse in B.C., but doesn’t have a timeline as to when she might begin practising.
Health-care workers from outside Canada still require work permits to be employed in the province, and those are capped each year per province under federal immigration quotas.
Americans are descending on Nanaimo this weekend, after a local resident took to social media to invite them to visit the B.C. city as a sign of solidarity with Canada. CBC’s Liam Britten headed to Nanaimo to speak with the visitors.
Smith-Taylor says she understands it’s not going to be a quick transition.
“I’m on step four of 502,” she said, describing her early stages of the immigration process, adding thatĀ she does feelĀ encouraged knowing that a team from Health Match B.C., a provincially funded recruitment service, is available to help her and her wife through both immigration and hiring steps.
Province launchingĀ targeted U.S. marketing campaign
Meanwhile, EbyĀ is pointingĀ to the active lifestyle and variety of communities and employment settings available for those considering coming north to work in health care.Ā
Faced with repeated questions from reporters asking whether B.C. can match nurse salaries in the U.S., he did not answer.
Health Minister Josie Osborne did jumpĀ in to say physician salaries in B.C. are “quite comparable” to those in the U.S.
The province is also launching a targeted U.S. marketing campaign in June in parts of the country with the highest interest in moving to B.C., including Washington and Oregon states and select cities in California.
The province previously announced plans to recruit U.S. doctors earlier this year. Eby said the province will provide an update on those efforts at a later time.Ā