AMN Healthcare International's Featured Jobs

Good morning everybody and welcome to our show onwards and upwards. Everything a global healthcare worker needs to know about living and working in the United States. I am your host Danielle Freedman here from AMN Healthcare International, where we are the only company in the United States to have both direct hire and staffing options. Isn't that exciting, we have both options to bring you to the US and reach your American dream.  

Let me know where you are watching from in the comments today I love to see where our viewers are watching from. I see we have Regine joining from the UK, morning or g or Good evening to you Regine. And Melda is watching from the Philippines, Mon Elbert, also from the UK, Jean is watching from Saudi Arabia hello, everybody. Thank you for joining us today. We have a very exciting show today. We have a lot of good content, a lot of good experts who are going to be coming on today and sharing their experience. So let's discuss what can you expect to see from us today.  

So as we started on our most recent shows, we are going to be doing our recruitment update, we are going to be doing dream jobs coming up today, we're going to be talking about three states that we are currently hiring for on both the staffing and the direct hire side. So you're going to learn all about three different states with our recruitment director. So that will be very interesting. Then we're going to talk to an RN about her life in North Carolina. I know a lot of you are very interested in North Carolina, North Carolina is a hot state right now. So a lot of very, very interesting contents there.  

You can ask your questions to this RN, ask her about her experience, her transition, any tips she has, and she's going to be sharing all of the insights, then we are going to be doing our clinical corner, we have some clinical tips for you. As you know, AMN Healthcare International has been bringing international nurses to the US for many, many, many years. So we know a thing or two. And we have our clinical nurse educator who's going to come on and she is going to share some insight with you all. So make sure to check out the clinical corner. Once we have finished with the clinical corner, we are going to have another RN discussing her life in North Dakota. So I know a lot of you are also very interested in North Dakota and the Midwest generally. And she's going to share all of the reasons that she decided to go to the Midwest, why she's thriving as an RN in North Dakota, and you can ask your questions, so make sure to put them in the chat.  

We will be watching and I will be taking questions. And then finally, last but not least, we're going to bring on our recruitment manager, and she's going to give you an update on recruitment. So you can ask her any questions she's gonna give us her thoughts and from her chair as a recruitment manager. So we got lots of experts, lots of RNs. We got lots going on today. So let's get started without further ado. So we are going to bring out our recruitment manager. Good morning. 

Good morning, Good afternoon, Good evening how is everyone? I'm so glad to be back. And for those of you who don't know me, my name is Deirdre O’Regan I'm Senior Director of Recruitment at AMN Healthcare International. So I'm very excited to introduce our segment today, which is going to be called dream jobs with. Wonderful so as Danielle had mentioned, we're going to be highlighting three fantastic states each time who are interviewing right now for direct and staffing opportunities. So first up, we have the amazing state of Georgia, which is where I live. And so three reasons why you would want to live and work in Georgia. So first and foremost, the client who is interviewing right now, this healthcare institution has been serving the community for over 50 years, and has been the recipient of many accolades and awards. So that's really important as your choose a facility where you want to go that they've been doing this for a long time and are world renowned. So why else would you want to live in Georgia.  

So if you didn't know, Georgia has been ranked as one of the top 10 most welcoming states in the US. So that's really important if you are relocating with your family, you want to feel welcome. So Atlanta, Georgia would be the place for you. Lastlast but not least, Atlanta is home to one of the busiest airports in the world. So that makes both domestic and international travel both accessible and affordable. So if you want to go home and visit your family, the airport is right there flies everywhere in the world. And so that's also great for you. Next up, we have the wonderful state of Missouri. So why would you want to live and work in Missouri? So first and foremost, it has a very low cost of living, which is very important, particularly if you are traveling with your family. It has got a thriving arts and culture scene, so why not have fun and explore while you' working? It also boasts four seasons, so you can experience sun in the summer, the changing leaves in autumn, and everything in between. So Missouri is a wonderful state for you to make your next home and again, is interviewing right now.  

So get your application and today speak to one of our expert recruiters and let's get your process started. And last but not least, we have North Carolina. So Danielle mentioned North Carolina, this is a hot spot, right? So lots and lots of interest in North Carolina. So why would you want to live in North Carolina. So it has got a strong and diverse economy. So think technology, think finance, think health care. So there are lots of opportunities in North Carolina for spousal employment. So if you are traveling with your spouse in your family, this will be a great choice for you because you've got lots of opportunities in this really strong economy. North Carolina boasts top health care and educational institutions in the country. All right so if you are if you are bringing almost college aged kids, then you've got a lot of opportunities for world renowned colleges and universities in the state of North Carolina. Believe it or not, North Carolina boasts the most beautiful beaches in the country, I can personally attest to that. They are gorgeous white sands, and in some cases, blue seas. It is just beautiful.  

So and also in North Carolina has an affordable cost of living and also boasts the four seasons. So that's like an addition to you. So before I leave you, I do want to let you know that if any of these locations are of interest to you, or if you're more interested in other locations, that's perfectly fine as well, our staffing, our staffing division for international is going to be hosting some exclusive interview events over the months of April and May or next one being April 25. So I would encourage you to apply today, get your slot scheduled so that we can make sure that we get you to the location that you want. And I look forward to presenting our next three states on our next show. But before I leave you let me say dream big dream smart choose AMN International until the next time. 

Thank you Deirdre. I love that dream big dream smart that really is just in encompassing what we do here at AMN International. We want to help you reach your American dream. So thank you Dee for being a part of the show and doing our dream jobs segment. If you'd like to follow us on our Instagram and our Facebook page, you can stay up to date with all of our hiring events on both the direct hire and the staffing side. So there is our handle on both Facebook and on Instagram. Stay up to date so that you can find your American dream job. All right, so before we get started, I'm seeing that people are watching from all over the world. We have people watching from Philippines. We have people watching from Pakistan, from UAE from Oman. It's great to see everybody here this morning. Thank you for joining us. Before we jump into our stateside interview with our RN from North Carolina, I thought it might be a good time to bring out our success path.  

So I'm sure a lot of you are wondering how am I going to make this happen? I hear there are lots of opportunities for me today we just highlighted three of the states that we are hiring for but there are lots of opportunities. How are you going to make this happen for yourself and how is AMN going to help. So this is what we call our success path and this is how you are going to reach your American dream. Your number one step is to pass the NCLEX that is your golden ticket. That is how you are going to get started once you pass the NCLEX you are going to go to step two which is where you are going to do the interview. Our recruiters are very well versed and very well skilled at helping you find the perfect placement. So maybe you are specific about your location or maybe you are more open and you just want to get filed immediately. So whatever that means for you we have direct hire and staffing positions around the country. Once you get a job offer you move to step three. This is the visa free they work and step four goes along with that where we do the licensing and credentialing. And our team will help you with steps three and four to make sure that you get your green card on time, and that you get your correct license for the state that you are going to.  

Step five is the get ready game plan. This is when you know that you are coming to the United States. You've done steps one through four, you put in the hard work, and now you get to celebrate. So step five, you are going to do your happy dance because now you're on your way to the US. Step six is the arrival sequence. This is where you have touchdown and we are going to help you once you arrive in the US Amen International is always by your side. And step seven, enjoy and prosper. This is our goal for all of our interactive international nurses to enjoy and to prosper. And with that being said, let's bring out our RN who's in North Carolina and joining and prospering right now. Let's hear from this nurse. Let's hear what he has to say. Good morning, Richard. 

Good morning Richard. We can't see you, but we can hear you. Okay it's a talking black square. We are live everybody so as we know, sometimes we have some technical hitches, but we can hear you at your feet. So that's good news for us yes okay, well, maybe we can just get started while you're figuring out your camera. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself, Richard, tell us about your journey to the United States. 

Okay, my name is Richard and I'm from Ghana in West Africa. I came to United States in first June 2020. I came with my family my journey was they had a lot of anxiety because of the long wait, did my I had my anklets I passed my NCLEX in 2020. And it took me like almost two years to come in here. So there was a lot of anxiety and also, due to some immigration process, there were some delays. But I'll say all the same those long wait did help me to prepare myself mentally for what lies ahead of me. So I'll say the journey was good. The good and the bad or all together made me what I am today. 

Well, I think you really hit the nail on the head Richard, moving to the United States. It's very exciting. But there can be a lot of anxiety it's a long, stressful road. I myself, am an immigrant I came with my family 20 years ago, if you've been following along with the show, you know, my mom is Tanya Freedman, who used to be our old host. And she talked about the struggles our family went through, it can be a very, very difficult move. Culture Shock is a very real thing. But as Richard said, it gives you time to prepare, it gives you time to get ready, which is great. And when you arrive in the United States, you can be here prepared and ready to succeed. So it's a long journey, but it's a worth a journey. All right, so I think we're gonna go back to Richard once he's able to get his camera back on so we're not all staring at a blank black screen and we're going to move to our next segment. So we are going to move to the clinical corner. 

All right, so excited for the clinical corner. Our clinical nurse educator is going to come on and give us some clinical tips. We as I said I am an international has been doing this for a long time. So we've seen a thing or two, and we know a thing or two so we are ready to give you some clinical tips. All right good morning, Holly. Good morning, Danielle. How are you today? I'm doing well. We're excited for the clinical corner. Let's hear what you have for us today. 

Okay, so today I want to talk about the US are in uniform. And there's a lot of details but we got to cover a lot very quickly. So first of all, you should know that your facility is going to have a dress code policy, you may have one where you work now. It will be different wherever you work. So some of it is going to be very specific to what you wear and where you wear it and whether it has to be embroidered or not and what color it's going to be and maybe even what brands some are very specific and some are less so. However, it does focus on a few key aspects of our role. It focuses on us having a professional appearance at all times.  

It focuses on infection control, which is really important for protecting our cells and our patients and families. And it focuses on job duties as well so the uniform needs to be functional for the role that you are going to be performing. Now if we go back to our visual, you'll see some of those key elements are defined. So an identification badge and in the example that you see here, it's placed in a very visible location, some dress codes will actually tell you where this item needs to be worn. So that you are easily able to locate and identify which people belong on the facility team, what their role is same for the patients and families that are there. But also so that you know, if maybe there's somebody in your location or facility who maybe shouldn't be in that particular area, maybe they shouldn't have access to that if they don't have proper identification on that would be a big clue for you to know that you need to question their presence and keep things safe and secure in the area where they're not supposed to be. 

We also have with IDs, some of those IDs are also designed for being able to get in and out of secure areas. So if you forget your ID badge one day, you may not be able to get into the unit or the Med Room or some other area of your facility that you need access to ID badges like a key function and don't leave home without it. Don't leave it in your car, or in a place where it might not be ready for you to grab and apply when you're ready to head to work. Scrubs colors are seemingly more important these days than they used to be. So they will usually tell you very specifically what color a nurse would wear what color a nurse's aide or nurse tech would wear, what color the lab team wears what color. So it makes it easier for all of us to figure out what role the person has based on what they're wearing, which is kind of easier than everybody wearing something different. And you're like, Okay, is that a nurse? Or is that a nurse's aide? Or is that the unit secretary? So it makes it a little easier for us to know who's who. Don't et though there are the ID badges as well. The other thing you want to think about is how you clean your scrubs.  

So we talked about infection control. Scrubs need to be cleaned in a way that removes microbes and infectious agents that we may have acquired during our workday. And that means we also need to use appropriate cleaning methods, detergents that work and a washer and dryer process as well as keeping those machines clean and free of microbes. So there's a lot of responsibility when it comes to caring for your scrubs that protects both you and your patients lab coats, I always had a lab coat when I was in a facility up and I actually still have some in my closet. They come in handy sometimes when you're chilled, but I did have a specific guideline around what I was allowed to wear and you may as well someone a matching lab coat to the scrub color you're wearing. Some don't mind if you wear a white one. Some require that there's embroidery with the facilities name or your name on it. So again, you'll get those details as you go. But if you're really easily chilled, you may find that your uniform dress code allows you to wear something like a turtleneck underneath your scrub tops so that you can have long sleeves. Have something to cover your neck and stay warm if you're easily chill.  

But again, check your dress code policy for that pen lights are something that may seem like they're a little bit old fashion and maybe not everybody has but your facility may allow you to keep one handy you just have to remember that with your pen like scissors. If you use them in a patient room, you have to properly clean them before you move on to care for your next patient for infection control to be well monitored and infection prevention to be a constant practice in your mind. So Vantage scissors I mentioned very briefly but they're very handy to have with you in your in your pockets. And the other thing is this so I'm not currently working at the bedside but as you see I still have mine and it is a part of your uniform here. So if you come to the States and you haven't used one of these in a couple of years, you're going to have to get one before you go to work and you're going to have to take it with you not borrow somebody else's or expect that the facility is going to have it for you.  

This is part of your uniform and you want to be able to feel comfortable wearing it using it identifying different heart and lung sounds very easily. This is the basics for a nurse coming out of school hear that they have this as part of that uniform and finally closed toed comfortable shoes, things that don't allow for liquids to get in them so some people love their clogs but if they're the clogs that have holes in them, that doesn't work. You want to protect yourself, you want to protect your skin, and so it needs to be proper footwear but for me, this is an investment I paid more for my shoe Houston I did for my stethoscope, because I want to be comfortable when I'm on my feet. And you can find good stethoscopes that are less expensive. But if you're not comfortable when you're running around on a nursing unit, your days get pretty rough. It's a long day so take care of yourself, make sure you have the right uniform elements and that you're following the facilities dress code policy. That's it for the clinical corner today. See you next time. 

Thank you, Holly. Thanks for being on thanks for introducing our tip from the clinical corner this morning. Every time you come on, I learned something new. So very I think you got a wealth of experience. So we're very lucky to have you on so thank you. Thank you for being a part of the clinical corner. I hope everybody watching found that interesting and useful. If you did, and if you were inspired, and you would like to apply, you could apply on our website, AMNhealthcare.co/international. And you will hear from Holly all throughout your processing with lots more clinical tips. She has lots and lots of clinical tips are as well. Thanks for joining us this morning, Holly. My pleasure have a great weekend, everyone. Bye bye. 

All right so I've got word from backstage that Richard was able to get on camera. So we are able to continue our interview about his RN life in North Carolina. So let's bring Richard back Richard, we can see your face we're very happy about that. Good morning, back here to our audience who are watching and may have missed it. Richard is our RN who is living in North Carolina, he was giving us a brief introduction about his journey to the United States, which I think as any immigrants can attest is usually a long one, but a well worth it one. So we're gonna get back to our interview with Richard, if you have any questions about North Carolina, please feel free to put them in the chat. And you can ask Richard, he is our expert from North Carolina. So let's get to it. Can you tell us why you chose North Carolina? 

It was kind of difficult to choose because I had so many offers from other hospitals after my interview, AMN gave me like 10 hospitals and I did interview with four. And like I had three who gave me office. But I chose North Carolina because I like to prepare myself. Before coming I did a lot of research on the internet ask a lot of questions from friends and colleagues who wants to live in North Carolina. And from my research, I found North Carolina to be a very good place to raise kids because I was coming in here with my family. North Carolina had a very good environment, a very good weather. And in Greenville, where I stay, the environment is very calm, very serene with a lot of trees around and does something that really helps me. And in addition to that, I did pray on it. I'm a Christian, and I pray on it. And I felt this inner peace that this is the right place to start my journey in us. So these are some of the reasons why I chose North Carolina. 

Okay, well, thank you for sharing, Richard, as you were describing the serene location with the green trees. I was thinking about our past segment on dream jobs where we heard that North Carolina has beautiful beaches. Have you got to experience any of those beautiful beaches? 

Well, not very much. But most of my friends in in here we have so many of Ghanaians or people from Ghana who are also in North Carolina. And they do go to the beaches and see interesting things about what they see there. But I'm a little scared of the sea. So I don't really go to the beach. 

Well, that's a good reason to stay away from the beach, but at least you know it's there if you want it. Yeah so I think you said that you arrived in 22 from Ghana. Is that right? Yes. Can you tell us a little bit about your arrival? What did it feel like that moment that you touchdown in the USA?  

I'll see first it was like a dream come true because I've waited a long time for it. And I did really make the journey quite easy because all the important stuff were already done before arriving here. When I came to North Carolina on first June, like I have some family members in here so I stayed there for like a week. And lucky for me, my family members my uncle and his wife. They were both nurses and they've been the nurses here over 30 years to the give me a lot of advice and a lot have tips to stay in here. And throughout my journey on the airport, everything went smoothly. It was just like, AMN has already done all the necessary stuff. So I just will, I was just showing the necessary document and it was very smooth for me. And most importantly, the community liaison in here also did a very good job for us. My house and everything was ready for me before I came. I didn't have much stress when I become a life in here. 

Wow well, that's definitely the dream to have some family here that you know are already happy here. You didn't have stress when you arrived, a man made sure that you were set up. You were ready to go so that's great to hear. Did you arrive with your family or did you come first? Yeah I came with my wife and two kids. Wow so that's a big trip to come with a family. I know when I moved to the United States with my family. It's a it's a big travel. It's a big trip. It's very exciting. You touch now you're like, oh my gosh, I did it and you said you were living in Greenville. Is that correct? Yes. Tell us a little bit about Greenville. What's the nearest city or sorry, the nearest airport to the city? What's the city like? Do you like living there?  

Yeah, I do like living in Greenville. See, first Greenville is a very calm place and I'm very calm in nature. So I really like it. A lot of trees around a lot of river bodies in here. The closest airport in here with Greenville has its own airport that's the pit Greenville airport. And the closest International Airport is rally airport, which is about one 120 minutes drive from where I live. And the pits. Greenville airport is like 30 minutes from where I live and also, one very interesting places. There is a pack, which is very close to where I live is there is a pack just behind the ECU health, medical school. They have a lot of different kinds of bass. There's this particular bass, they call it the Canada goose, which is very beautiful. I like to see the flying and swimming in the rivers. And they have different types of fishes. Also in the rivers and so many different types of that beautiful trees is one place I mostly go there just to rewind and relax myself after a long day. Or if I need to think on something is one place I really go there just to calm myself down.  

Greenville while one thing I like about Greenville is there's no much traffic in here. It's easy to go and come. You don't spend too much time on the road, not too much traffic around. And most importantly, the weather in here is very favorable to me. It's not very cold. I remember when I was coming that was one of my major concern because I don't like it called by the Greenville weather is very, very calm, very, very favorable to me. Those are definitely some very good insights and some very good tips about Greenville and about North Carolina in general and why somebody might want to go there. I actually live in California. I like you also I'm not a cold weather bird. So I like somewhere that's a little bit more temperate. So I know North Carolina has also got very good weather and that sense. Yeah. Okay, so I see we have a couple of questions of nurses who wants to know about finding accommodations in North Carolina? Was it easy to find accommodations in North Carolina that were close to work? How did your search go?  

My accommodation to my workplace is like 10 of 10 minutes walk the hospital away half is like 10 minutes walk from where I live, and other beautiful accommodations around and so much options to choose from. Before I came in here, as I said earlier on am and did all the necessary was for us accommodation and everything was ready before I came in here. So I didn't go to the stress of knocking through the givers. They're available accommodations those around us and the variables like hours or minutes away from us. So I made all the necessary decision and the net There are three plants before I came here. So everything was just ready for me when I came in here. But there are a lot of beautiful apartments in here. And like so many options to choose from based on your pocket, and there's always something there for you. 

 

Okay, well, that's very, very exciting to hear. I'm sure for a lot of nurses, the thought of not going through a long commute, and being able to walk 10 minutes to work is amazing. That's the goal. I live in Los Angeles, and there is a lot of traffic go 10 minutes. That doesn't happen. Yeah, sounds lovely. A place that serene, that has no traffic, probably a lower stress lifestyle. So that sounds like a great place to start your American. How have you found the cost of living to be in North Carolina I see Albert would like to know about cost of living and things you do for leisure. 

So I'll say the cost of living in North Carolina is very reasonable, reasonable in the sense that based on what I get from a paycheck, I'm able to pay my bills on time, I'm able to see the letter from work I get. And I'll say the cost of living is very reasonable. Rents, from my colleagues and other people I know in here is reasonable based on the economy we have now the cost of living is not very high here. 

Okay, well, that's exciting. That's great. I think we actually had a cost of living graphic in North Carolina, comparing it to Los Angeles, California, and that we found that the cost of living is 53%. Higher in Los Angeles, California. Look at that housing costs, transportation costs, food costs. We also have a graphic comparing North Carolina to New York, and New York is 136% higher cost of living than North Carolina look at that transit, housing costs 465% tire, so very affordable cost of living, especially in terms of housing. And I know when you're coming to the United States, especially when you're coming with a family cost of living is something you really want to consider. So it sounds like North Carolina has a really good cost of living. So that's great to hear, Richard. Yeah let's switch to the other part of the question that Juan Albert had, what do you like to do for fun? What are the things to do for leisure in North Carolina? 

Well, I mostly go to the park. I like to be quiet and just minding my own business and looking at like animals in the Indian natural state. So I mostly go to the park, which is very close to me. And as I said earlier, there are so many different animals, Queiroz, pieces, fishes, turtles. Yeah, do go there, Lord, just to relax myself. And sometimes I go with my case. And you see a lot of people around there, too, is a very good place. Very close to me is like 10-30 minutes by car. Yeah, and I do go the end is just behind the hospital, just behind a medical school. And that's where I mostly go to relax. And, and in addition to that, there are a lot of parks also for case. We have a lot of parks from the Pitt County. They have a lot of parks around where we teach the case for them to also have fun with other people. Yeah.  

Mostly due to Richard, that sounds so relaxing and enjoyable. I'm sure after a long day of work, especially as a nurse, which can be very stressful to go to the park and have that serene environment. sounds so nice and just wonderful. And I can picture it. I can see your kids sitting at the park. That sounds really nice thank you for sharing. And how's your experience with AMN been overall?  

It’s been very fantastic and one word I'll use for AMN is they are very honest. What they tell you is what you get. So I really love my relationship with the men before coming in here or what they told me is what I came to meet. And in case there are changes, they also make me know ahead of time. We have a good community liaisons who help us even when we are finished with them, they still call to check up on us. We have other representative of who I am and who call us occasionally to check up on us we have clinical coordinators who call us to find out more about their life. It's not just like They are doing a job this year as part of a family and they really show a lot of concern. So I'm very happy with what AMN is doing with us are very grateful. And I'll say God bless you for that. 

Well, that makes me so happy to hear Richard, I think you really hit the nail on the head. A lot of us here at AMN including myself are immigrants. So we know about this journey. We know how it feels. It's very exciting. But it can be a long process, and it can be very scary. So we really want to make sure that it's as smooth and easy of a process for you so you can reach your American dream. I know what that feels like that moment touching down. Every year. I touched down on July 6, every year on July 6, my family looked at each other. And we just say we did it. It's just it's amazing. So I'm so glad to hear that. Richard, thank you for sharing all about your experience. I see. We had a lot of questions about North Carolina and a lot of questions for Richard. Unfortunately, we are running a little bit under time. So Richard, if you have a chance to go back in and answer some of those questions, I'm sure our nurses would love to hear from you. And we'd love to hear have you on again and hear more about North Carolina. I think everybody's very excited about North Carolina, it sounds like a great state to work in a great state to listen. And a great state to have a family in. Glad to hear that you're prosperous. 

And wanting I'll want to add up is that there are very good schools around in here, especially if you come in with your family. We have very great schools in here. Just care for your case. And the people in here are very welcoming, very friendly. Especially in our workplace. You have people who are like, they show a lot of care and concern, they are ready to help whenever you call on them. They it looks like they understand where you're coming from, and they are ever ready to help you. And one thing I will also want to say before I end is like I really love my hospital ECU health, it looks like everything is well planned. They have a well planned system for international nurses. We have various seminars just to prepare us for the work. And you easily acclimatized yourself with a work and environment in here. And this really has really made my Steam year very, very good. 

 

Well, I'm so happy to hear that. Richard, it makes a big difference when you know that you're going to a place that's welcoming that's prepared for you that has a community that's already built in. So it sounds like you are living that American dream. And that makes all of us that I am and really happy to hear. Thank you for being on with us today. Richard, we really appreciate it. We appreciate your insights and I'm sure our nurses who are watching around the world are inspired by your story. I know I was always welcome. Thank you very much. 

If you were inspired, by listening to Richard share his story you can apply online at AMNhealthcare.com/international and our recruiters are on hand ready and waiting to help you reach your American dream just like Richard. I saw we had a question in the chat from Sheila asking if AMN has O'Grady Peyton under it. So just to clarify for anybody who may be new to our page, or maybe just joining us, we are AMN Healthcare International. We are the only company to offer both direct hire under Connetics USA and staffing under O'Grady Peyton, so we have options for you under both staffing and direct hire. The world is your oyster and we are here and happy to bring you to the United States to reach your American dream. Just like Richard. So hopefully that gives you some good insight Sheila. All right so that was really, really amazing to hear from Richard all about his experience in North Carolina. I know there's lots of chatter going on in the chat. Everybody's very interested and excited. It's a great state to live in to work in for many, many reasons as Richard explained, and now we are going to turn to a another RN who is thriving in North Dakota, and she is going to share her experience and what it is like to live in North and North Dakota. So let's bring on our RN good morning Clarice. How are you? 

I just gave her a night shift. And oh yeah, well I tried my best to hide it. No, you look great. I would have never known and isn't that the RN life will come in from night shift and come in straight onto our show. So thank you so much for being here this morning and giving us a little bit of your time. We are very excited to hear from you. If you are just joining us, we have our RN who's joining us from North Dakota. And she's here to share her experience. So if you have any questions from for Clarice, go ahead and put them in the chat. And we will be taking those questions. So Clarice, let's get started. Can you tell us about your journey to the United States, 

I came directly from United Kingdom because I also worked there as a RN. And luckily, after I passed my NCLEX, in 2022, I was hired right away by sent for Bismarck, North Dakota. And I was one of the lucky nurses who got hired. They hired around maybe 200, nurses, international nurses, and we were lucky that our process took just one year. And 2023 2022, I passed my NCLEX and June of 2023, I was already in the US. So it's just a one year process. For me. It was just delayed by some of the requirements. But nonetheless, compared to the previous applicants of the, in the United States who waited like more than 10 years, or five years, so I'm lucky to have been with kinetics before now. Hmm. And just arrived in the US in one year. So yeah, well, I got the opportunity, even if I was already in another country. Wow, that's amazing. I'm sure a lot of nurses are watching and are thinking, Wow, that's amazing. I mean to get here in under a year. That's very, very exciting.  

And for those of you who may be watching and feeling a little bit discouraged about retrogression, about some of the delays that are happening, what would you say to some of those nurses, for their retrogression? Just wait, because I actually have a sister, who is also a USRN. But in Texas, she got delayed, like maybe two to three years. And for my story, just to inspire everyone I took the NCLEX twice. And you just need to believe and pray and try your best and do what you can. God has a plan, God has plans for your life, and he provides. So just don't give up I mean, yeah, I came from Japan and everything, and then went to the UK. And finally I reached the I call this the highest license, the crown, maybe the highest license of all the USRN license, so no offense meant for other countries, but the American dream.  

Yeah you did it. And I think for anybody who's watching and I think you said it really well. Just stick with it. Don't feel discouraged, you're gonna get there, eventually. It's just a matter of time, there might just be a slight delay. And like you said, you experienced delays as well. I think anybody who goes through the immigration process, myself included, knows that there are sometimes going to be hiccups, sometimes gonna be delays, but it's going to be well worth it in the end. As we can see, you're here now. So tell us a little bit about North Dakota, why did you decide to go there? 

Initially, I was afraid to come here. But since my current job in the UK was in a nursing home, I had no choice. Because this, this is the only hospital that hired me and did not like required me to have a current hospital experience. So I researched about the place at the hospital itself, and I found out that it was Sanford was a magnet hospital. So it's like JCI in our country. So I was like and I found also that we were there was a group chat for people hired in Stanford. So there are a lot of Filipino nurses building a community coming to Bismarck. So when I entered in the US, the first thing they told me I mean, the immigration officer told me was, well, it's summer now but watch out for winter but I was not actually afraid of winter here because I've been to other countries and I'm so happy that I chose to live here and work here because the people here are wonderful. I haven't experienced any rudeness or unfortunate events for an international person, Asian. So yeah people here are welcoming, very helpful. And they do understand that you're not a native English speakers. So they don't judge you for it. They don't, they're not racist here. Also, the nurses here are, are also helpful. They're not used to international, I mean, international people, but they try their best to be welcoming. One advice I got from my occupational nurse when I had my medical was, you'll get good and bad patients, but appreciate the good ones. So that's what I've have been doing for the past eight months that I have been working in my hospital is just appreciating the good patients that I have, and so far out of maybe 10. One patient is rude, but that's been before. But as of now onwards, currently, there's no more wood patients. 

Well, that's good we always like to hear that. So thank you, Clarice. A lot of good information there about why you chose North Dakota, I heard you say that the hospital that you're at as a magnet, which means it's the most prestigious of hospitals at the in the United States, I think it's what only eight or 9% are magnet hospitals. So that's a huge, huge plus, to know that you're at a magnet facility. That's the gold standard, really, and that you came with a huge community of other international nurses, I'm sure that was made the transition a lot easier, you have that community already built in. And it sounds like the people there are friendly, and it's a nice place to live and, and that's really great too.  

Can you talk a little bit about the cost of living in North Dakota, it's actually very low compared to other states. Initially, I did not know how to drive so I opted for an apartment near the hospital. It's just a four minute walk so I live literally in front of the hospital. So maybe the house the apartment, the most expensive ones will be 900 for a studio unit. But you can have a one bedroom two bedroom and that amount in maybe further areas that no hospital. But if you know how to drive, if you have a family to hook up with you in the in Bismarck, then I advise you to just go to the apartments that you can afford. But for me I am single so I'm okay with being near the hospital and I can afford. Regular gas is around just point five cents difference so it's 3.14 regular premium is 2.9 I think or 3.5.  

So I don't really have like an exact amount of how much a gallon is per month because it depends on your commute. I use my car if I go to Costco or Walmart or if I have places to go. We have Uber here but it's somehow it's sometimes difficult to book and it's expensive as well. So I opted to learn how to drive food  okay also we have Asian store here we have Asian restaurant. So if you crave for your own country food you can cook that at your home. You can also if you want Chinese Japanese, we Bismarck has it here. I mean it's a it's a city, but it's a super laid back city. It's complete. It's convenient you have necessary things. If you need something, you can get it right away, except for immigration purposes. But other than that, yeah, you can actually ancient stories just near Japanese restaurant. Yeah. Well, that's great to hear. So you got a lot of a lot of resources nearby.  

And while it is in the Midwest, you have a lot of stuff right around you that you can easily get to, and telling me that you have a four minute commute. I know we just had Richard on from North Carolina who had a 10 minute commute, and I was jealous, a four minute walking commute. But it's amazing. So you don't even need to use your car to get to work, which is amazing. Yes, no, we actually we had some graphics with some cost comparisons between North Dakota and some of the bigger cities in the United States. So North Dakota versus Los Angeles, Los Angeles is 56% higher cost of living. So much higher cost of living in a big city, North Dakota is very cost efficient housing costs are 159%, higher in the big city of Los Angeles than North Dakota. So when you said $900 for a studio, I was like, wow, that is amazing. Very, very affordable, I'm sure especially as a single person who's thinking about just you know, making the most of your money and saving up. So that makes it a lot easier to do that. Okay. And I want to I want to ask you, we have so many questions. I see we got a lot of questions also in the chat, but I want to turn to something a little fun. What's your favorite thing to do in North Dakota, what's something you do for fun? 

What we do with because I have friends here already, like after shift, either we go to their, one of our friend's house to eat dinner, or eat out to our favorite restaurant, which is a Thai restaurant, or, and that's after eating at the restaurant, they go to Starbucks just to catch up because me and my friends have our have different units. So we don't work all the time with each other. So we see each other during our day offs, or post shifts catch up. That's what we do. And sometimes when we plan we go to Fargo. It's a nearby city here from Bismarck. Three hour away. We can do it in one day. Like we can go over there and then just come back in the afternoon or in the evening, just to visit and have fun. And if we have trips coming up like going to South Dakota to see Mount Rushmore, we have a three day, three days is enough to visit South Dakota. 

That sounds amazing. I love seeing all of those pictures of you all around North Dakota in the United States. That is very cool. North Dakota is right smack dab in the middle of the country. So you are pretty close to a lot of different things and a lot of different places including Canada, right? You're like right on that border with Canada. So you can go a lot of different places, which is amazing to be right in the middle of the country. All right. Well, that sounds all very, very exciting. Clarice thank you for sharing. And again, I love seeing those pictures love seeing your happy face love seeing you thriving. So I want to ask you one more question. How was your experience with AMN sounds like you got here pretty quickly. 

The best when, because I know that AMN Connetics, like have the best hospitals to offer. That's why when my friends have just passed like their NCLEX and they asked me where to apply. I immediately like refer Connetics right away, because I know that they have trusted hospitals. And I know that that the hospitals are fast. It's processing nurses here too. It's just the retrogression is happening right now. But aside from that, I know that a event is trustworthy is it has been proven by me and my friends here and the 200 nurses that came here for Yeah, well, thank you for saying that Clarice. I think I speak for all of us here at am and healthcare International where we have Connetics, like you mentioned the direct hire side and O'Grady Peyton in the staffing side. It makes us very happy to see our nurses prospering and doing really well in the United States. and living that American dream. That really is our goal for everybody.  

And to be that trusted partner who knows that we made a big difference in your life and all of your friends lives. That's something very special to me and something very special to a lot of us that AMN. So, thank you for sharing your experience Clarice. I'll give you maybe 30 seconds more just to give us one last snippet of advice. What do you want to say to any nurses who are watching around the world? How do you want to inspire them. 

Please don't give up on your dreams. Especially if you want. If you really want to come here. Just be patient, pray, and whatever you are doing right now. Just continue to wait and never lose hope. And maybe just go, go pray. Just go pray and ask him for guidance. And he will lead you to your dreams. One day, so yeah, be patient. 

Thank you, Clarice. I think that's some good advice. For anybody who's watching and feeling like, Can I do this, you can do it, be patient go through the process, just like Hillary Sted dislike, just like Richard did, just like I did as an immigrant to coming to the US. And it is a process, but it's well worth it at the end. So thank you, Clarice for joining us today. We really appreciate it. We love hearing about your experience. And I'm so happy to hear that you are prospering and thriving and living the American dream. That really is our goal for all of our international nurses. So now you can go get some sleep, I'm sure you're a nice gift. 

Thank you have a great rest of your day. If you were inspired by Clarice or by Richard or any of our international nurses who have been on our shows and you would like to apply today, you could apply at AMNhealthcare.com/international. And our recruiters on the direct hire and the staffing side are ready waiting and excited to help you reach your American dream. Also, if you want to learn more about the states, we have a whole resource library with lots of information, lots of shows that we pass done on past states all around the United States. As you can see, we got all the different states covered. So you can learn about different things that are happening and all of those different states, we're going to drop the link in the comments. And you can go and learn more. You can learn about the kids, the community, the transportation are in support lots of good stuff on there.  

So feel free to go check that out. You got Google at your hands, you can do your research, and we will be happy to be a part of that and help you make the correct decision for you and your family. All right, so last but certainly not least, we are going to be talking about recruitment in the USA with our recruitment manager recruitment. I love it love the graphics. We're going to be bringing on our recruitment manager Joy. Hello, Joy. How are you? 

Hi, Dan. Good morning hi, everyone good morning, good afternoon, good evening, anywhere in the world. Hello I thought yourself how long have you been doing this? I know you got lots of experience. 

Yes for those who don't know me, I'm Joy Bansag and I'm based in the Philippines. I've been working with AMN for the last 14 years now. 

Okay, well, we are lucky to have joy on with us today and we are excited to hear all about recruitment in the USA Joy can you give us an update? What are you seeing from your recruitment seat right now. 

As you know, AMN is the only organization in the market which offers both direct and the staffing opportunity so this means that AMN offers a lot of opportunities for the nurses to choose from so as I can say like today or this is the best time to get your place in line and start your immigration process with us. So for those who are interested, please start sending your application now through our website and our recruitment team will be happy to contact and discuss all these options for you. 

All right, well, thank you Joy. So we got nurses I know we got lots of comments in the in the comments box. We got lots of questions I can see lots of nurses are excited and really interested in coming to the US and they want to get here as quickly as possible. What's your best advice to them? 

I encourage all the nurses to be more open with either stopping or direct however if you want to get your I-140 filed immediately and secure a priority date. I think staffing would be a better option for them because they can file immediately. If they will be interviewed next week, they can. The staffing can file immediately for the I-140. And we can get the perfect placement for them before the relocation to us plus our staffing options is the shortest in the market with only two years contract. So just be open with both opportunities. 

I think you said it perfectly joy, if you want to get here fast, and that is your main goal. Be open. If we don't have a location, that's exactly what you want. Maybe the staffing route is going to be a better option for you. It's only a two year shortest in the industry option. And you can get filed right away which as we are in a period of delays right now you want to get that I-140 filed you want to get that priority date. We talked about it every show. So I think that is some good advice, Joy. So if somebody is very location specific, and we don't have any opportunities in that location at this time, what are your thoughts, what would you advise them? 

Location is we understand for our site, that location is very important. And we understand that however, if you'd be very picky, especially during this retrogression that will delay the process or that will delay the that will delay for you to get your priority date with our staffing option, they can file you remember the I-140 at the earliest and orders are changing. So, your discharge location may not be available now but it might be available later before your deployment. The important thing is to get your I-145. So that you can get your priority date, the earliest you can have your priority date, that is the fastest also you can reach us and if it case that the preferred location will not be available even when you are about to deploy just complete the two years contract. Staffing are three years contract with direct and move anywhere after your contract that we all our all our hospitals are handpick and so with either staffing and direct and for sure you are in good hands, whichever hospital we will go.  

So I think  that's it. It's just location wise just be open I think that's all I can I think that's good advice Joy. Thank you for sharing that I see we have a question for you. But we also have a comment and I want to read the comments because to me it made me smile. So Neil Ryan says Ma'am Joy, I finally get to see your face. You helped me understand between the staffing and direct hire. I appreciate your help with my application. May you continue to be a blessing to other aspiring nurses. 

Thank you for your comment yeah on behalf we at the AMN and are willing to like we will be your guide and we will be helping you to reach your destination to reach your American dream. Well, it sounds like you helped Neil Ryan understand the difference between direct hire and staffing and I see Imelda has the same question. What's the difference between direct hire and staffing? I know we could use a whole show to cover all the differences, but maybe just give a quick brief snippet what should nurses be thinking about? 

For the direct, you will be employed directly with the hospital for the staffing we have you will be employed with the staffing and you will be working with different hospital but it is all for placement. We will be working either with the staffing, you will be working in one hospital throughout your contract, both internal about staffing and direct we are supporting you throughout the process. So from the beginning until the support we gave you is the same for that for the direct and the staffing. And yeah, sorry and for the for the direct it's three years contract and for the staffing is two years contract. 

Okay, that's an important point for our nurses to know, two years with the staffing side and three years with the direct side. So that's an important difference. There are so many similarities, so many differences. At the end of the day, we are all under AMNhealthcare.com/international, as you've heard from our past nurses who just gave their experience. We are a trusted partner by many nurses we've been doing this for a long time. We know what we're doing Joy knows what she's doing. Clearly she's helping lots of nurses. So I love to see the comments, and we would love to help you. So if you want to learn a little bit more about the difference of direct hire and staffing we actually have a whole show that we did. You can go to the link, we're going to drop it in the chat of that show. And you can learn all about the ins and outs of staffing and direct hire. But once again, we're both under AMN Healthcare International. We're both here to help you and we want to reach we want you to reach your American dream.  

So Joy, I have one final question for you. What's some advice that you would offer to nurses who are wanting to apply and live in work in the United States as quickly as possible and they want to reach their American dream? What's some what's the some inspiration you can share with us?  

Just to be open or whatever, especially right now during retrogression. A lot of nurses are saying like, they want to wait until retrogression is over before they will start, which is the wrong motion because right now, you do not wait for the retrogression to be over because we can file your green card, we can start the process. The only thing is we will be like affected until the during the consulate interview but start the process do not lose hope. There is a delays because of the retrogression but we are monitoring the priority date and we are updating the nurses. So you are in good hands with AMN and we will be helping you throughout even you already working with the with the US the support is always there from. 

Thank you joy. I think you said it best It's just a delay, get your place in line, get that priority date get started. Don't wait, don't delay. AMN is here we're happy and ready and excited to help you just like we've helped 1000s of nurses in the past. Join us here on behalf of our whole recruitment placement team. And as you can hear from her from her mouth directly, just get started. We're here to help you. Alright, well, thank you Joy for being on with us today. It was great to hear from you. I can see you get a lot of love in the comments. Everybody loves joy. Super helpful if you want to talk to Joy, or any of our other very helpful recruitment placement managers. There you go thank you, Joy. You want to talk? Go ahead, Joy. Yeah, thank you so much, everybody for joining. Thank you, Dan. 

If you want to talk to Joy or any of our other recruiters, you can apply online AMNhealthcare.com/international. And they will be happy to help you just like they've helped all of these other nurses reach their American dream. So apply today AMNhealthcare.com/international. Thank you Joy, we look forward to having you on again for another recruitment in the USA update. All right, so let's bring up our calendar for our upcoming shows. If you loved our show today, know that we have plenty of shows upcoming and we are excited to share them with you. So on April 19, we have our Immigration Q&A May 3 we have Career Day. This is where we are going to be showcasing employers on both the direct hire and the staffing side that are hiring right now all across the United States. We on May 14, we have our nurses month game show.  

And we have our Lefora Talk Show on April 16, embracing your new life in the USA. So these shows are at 7am Pacific Standard Time, California time. And we would love to have you join us. We also want to hear from you. What topics do you want us to cover? What do you want to see on the upcoming shows, please put it in the comments. And we are watching we're monitoring, we want to make sure that we are giving you guys all of the good information that is going to be helpful for your processing and for your transition to the United States to reach your American dream. We also have our AMN Academy. So these are our shows that are come up on every Monday at 5am Pacific Standard Time, California time with our partners, IPass, 9.0 Niner, and Aspire RN, these are free classes everybody. So take advantage. It's all about the NCLEX all about the English. And they're free classes once every Monday from these partners. So make sure you go you watch take advantage if you haven't passed your NCLEX.  

And if you haven't passed your English, you can get that free information. So thank you for joining us today. It was great to see all of the chatter in the comments. Great to see where everybody is watching from. We are so thankful that you trust an amen and that we get to be a part of your process. Please join us next time for our next shows. Onwards and upwards. And goodbye everybody we'll see you soon.