Emma2

16 hours ago, Mandymcc said:

Hi folks

Just a quick question does anyone know if the open university nursing degree is recognised in Australia or any idea how I could find out.

Thanks

Hi Mandy,

I got my nursing qualification through the OU and worked for 5 years as a nurse in Queensland. It was a bit of a faff getting registered and took about six months but they definitely recognise it. (Well they did 7 years ago!) 

Good luck.

Hi,

I'm looking for up to date advice re: exporting our animals from Brisbane to UK.

Firstly, any idea how long ago they need to have had the rabies jab? I'm seeing 21 days on some websites and 6 months on others.

Secondly, which pet transporters would you recommend?

 

Much obliged

Hi there,

We just moved back and had our 2 cats and 2 dogs flown back from Brisbane to London.

If if I recall the rabies jab only needs to be done about 6 weeks before, maybe less? Ours had theirs in October and flew in January.

We used Jetpets and they were absolutely brilliant. I couldn't fault them. They were really friendly and very helpful, I had to change the date of the animals travel but they did not mind at all. The man who collected our babies was lovely and even sent me a photo of them all just before they boarded and let me know that they were checked in with no issues. I had told him that I was concerned that my old dog wouldn't pass the vet check and I didn't want to get on our flight without knowing that my babies were safely onboard there's!all the animals arrived safely at Heathrow, they were all relaxed and happy, even our very nervous cat. The pet carriers they use are really large, they had far more room than we did in our seats ?.

good luck with your move.

Emma

The age old dilemma:

Loving life in the sun, but missing family and 'old friends'...

 

We moved to the Gold Coast, from leafy Wiltshire, almost 4 years ago. I'm a GP, my husband is at home and looks after our 3 children, currently 13, 7 and 4. We live in a beautiful house with a pool, and a boat, and the kids all go to a great private school. I also enjoy my work much more in Australia, compared with the NHS in England, for many reasons. I would struggle to go back and work in the NHS, although I do have a great belief in the principle of the NHS and free health care for all, I would struggle with how it is managed currently. Generally speaking though, life should be great.

 

The difficulty is, we have a wonderful life here, but no one to share it with...

 

My 2 eldest (girls) are wanting to go back to England, mainly because they miss their grandparents, cousins and friends. We miss the company, the love, the feeling of belonging with family. I feel guilty that my children are growing up without that valuable time with their grandparents, aunts and uncles, and the fun of spending time with their cousins. And of course, the family in UK are also missing out on our 3's childhoods. The longer we leave it, the more 'distant' we will become from our family. I feel selfish for staying here, predominantly because work is more rewarding, and because of our lifestyle.

 

Other things I miss about England: There's so many things to do, culture, history, Europe, 'genuine' people, courteous drivers, old friends who you can reminisce with, the countryside, and houses that are built for all weather (having had a cold winter - I've gone soft) with central heating and double glazing! I love the Gold Coast, for the weather and the stunning beaches, but I find it shallow, superficial and actually a bit boring. But then, I'm not particularly into sports, or watching sports.

 

We have made 2 trips back to the UK since we emigrated. The first one was for Xmas a couple of years ago. Xmas here is not really Xmas! Especially when you have absolutely no family here. It was cold, wet and dark, and we could not wait to get back to the Gold Coast! The 2nd trip was recently, for 3 weeks in June/ July. The weather was fabulous, the evenings were amazing (it's funny how you forget so quickly about it not getting dark until 10.30 at night!), and it was lovely not to get eaten alive by midges! It was heartwarmingly wonderful to see the family, and to watch our kids have fun and share love with the family again. I didn't want to come back to Australia this time!

 

Have started looking at schools near our UK family, and am also spending an unhealthy amount of time on Rightmove! But know that if we were to move back, we would miss the sunshine, the warmth, and I would miss my job. And we couldn't afford to send 3 kids to private school in England, it's much more achievable out here. I couldn't go straight back into being a GP again, as I have been out of England for more than 2 years, and would have to have a period of induction and ?retraining. The morale in the NHS seems so low at the moment, I'm not even sure I would want to. But I would have to find some sort of job pretty quickly to support our family.

The smaller house, no pool/ boat doesn't bother me. The endless rain might though. Have been hearing what a washout the school summer holidays have been.

 

We plan to stay here until we get citizenship, which should be in the next 6-12 months hopefully. At least that way, we can always come back if we realise that we have made a huge mistake.

 

But right now, I am desperately missing family, and close friends. I know the red carpet treatment on our return will not last forever, but I also know that our family will welcome us back with open arms. Of course, if I could persuade them all to move over here, I would probably try. But that will never happen.

 

Would love to hear from anyone else going through the same. Emotions are all over the place at the moment.

 

:ssign16:

I could have written this! This is exactly how I feel! We're making the move back in December. It's actually my husband who is the GP in our family and I have to say that the whole returners scheme is driving us mad and seems utterly ridiculous but if you time your return around the exam/simulated surgery then hopefully you wouldn't have to spend too long on a low income. Unfortunately we only worked that one out after we had booked our flights home!! I do worry about missing the weather but to be honest I find it far too hot here in the summer anyway and the fact that incomes are much lower in the uk is also hard but money isn't everything. I can't wait to be back near my family (my 9 year old can't wait to be near his grandparents again) and be around like minded people. I know people will disagree with my thoughts but we're all different and whats right for one person is not necessarily right for another. you have to go with your heart.

Emma x

We're booked with Jetpets too, they've been great so far! We're paying $6200 for 2 medium dogs and 2 cats which I thought was pretty good.

Thanks for your input. I think maybe I'll aim more towards the Cheltenham area rather than Gloucester as this is what I've been hearing in general that Cheltenham is gorgeous, Gloucester docks are lovely but the rest of the city is not so hot! There's a really good school in Cheltenham that I'd like to try and get my son into so that would be perfect. I think really it's better to have a smaller house in a nicer area than a big house in a place that you don't really want to be.

Its great thinking about our new adventure, never thought I'd be so excited about moving back to the UK!

Thanks again Harpodom and H283

We're moving back to the Uk at the end of 2015 and are just trying to decide on areas. We moved out to the Gold Coast four years ago from Devon but would like to move to a different area when we go back. Devon is beautiful but a little bit quiet so we are thinking about moving a bit nearer to Bath and London. We narrowed it down to the Cheltenham/Gloucester area we think but are flexible. We would just like to be within an hour isn of Bristol and two hours (by train) from London.

Would really appreciate any feedback from those who know the areas and any recommends.

Thanks,

Emma

Hi Wilson26,

Thanks for that. We brought our two dogs out here four years ago and they were absolutely fine. I was worried sick about them travelleling and then they had to do 30 days in quarantine too but they were absolutely fine. I paid someone to visit them as soon as they arrived and they seemed really happy and relaxed and when we got them home they settled really quickly. I think that in relative terms they are not in transit for that long, bearing in mind that they sleep a lot and once they see you again at Heathrow all will be forgiven!!

Emma

We also need to move our dogs back to the uk so would be very interested if anyone has recommendations.

Welcome,

we moved to the Gold Coast 4 years ago. Husband is also a GP, we have kids and brought out 2 dogs so if you want to ask anything PM me and I'll try and help!

Emma

Will miss:

- Earning more money

- Kangaroos and Cockatoos at the bottom of the garden

- Trying to think of another one!

Won't miss:

- Australians

- Mosquitos

- The feeling that I just don't belong here

Not going back just yet, probably in 4 years time but good luck with your move back home. Edinburgh is such a gorgeous place to live. :cute:

Hi Annaliese,

I'm an adult Community nurse and have been on the Gold Coast for a year now with my husband and kids. Firstly, nursing is a little frustrating here, definitely not more autonomy! It's not too bad in the community but I have friends who are hospital nurses and say that you're not allowed to use your knowledge & skills in the same way as the UK. I think basically you are restricted as to what you can do. A friend who works in ICU says she's not even allowed to put the blood sample in the blood gas machine and I don't think that you're able to make any decisions about the management of patients without discussing it with a doctor - and I'm talking about decisions that nurses would be expected to make in the UK. I have to say that this information is second hand but in my experience as a Community based nurse I am definitely restricted. In the UK I managed the Flu Vaccination Program for our area but here you have to undertake a course which costs at least $1000 to be able to give vaccinations without a doctor having seen the patient first. Of course you may find that it is quite different in other areas/states? It depends whether you are coming for career satisfaction or a change in lifestyle?

Our kids love it here (15yrs, 13yrs & 6yrs) and have settled really well. The school which they go to is lovely but do push the kids a lot. My 6 year old has 2 different reading books every night and at least 1.5 hours of other homework a week! Having said that he absolutely loves it at the school.

I have not found any negativity towards us for being English, to be honest there are such a large number of immigrants here that it is probably quite normal to see people from different countries move into the area. I think that it is one of the great things about Australia - meeting people from so many different places.

One thing I would say about Australia(or at least the Gold Coast) is that it is not a cheap place to live. Food is expensive, clothes are quite expensive, make-up is ridiculously expensive! Water is expensive, so is the internet, rent and electricity! Don't mean to be negative but just something to consider.

If you want to know anything else just ask and I'll try to answer.

Emma :biggrin:

Hi,

 

Can someone please advise me what paperwork I have to complete for nursing registration on a Working Holiday Visa?

 

I am looking at the AGOS-04, but it looks set up for someone seeking permanency.

 

Also am I required to pay a $220 overseas assessment charge?

 

What are the average processing times, i will be arriving in August.

Just a note re processing times - I sent my application from the UK in October and they have only just started looking at the application in March! Unfortunately a couple of things were incorrect so now I have to try and get the new paperwork together which is quite tricky as I am now living in Australia and I need to get it from the UK!

Emma

Hi Emma,

 

To register you need AHPRA the new registration board not ANMC, ANMC deal only with skills assesment for visas if you google AHPRA, you should be directed to the website good luck. Cheryl.

Thanks Cheryl, I think I've found the application form now I just have to get together all the paperwork they want!!

Emma

I have just realised that my last post is a bit redundant as the QNC does not seem to exist anymore but I do have a new question. How on earth do I register with the ANMC?? I have been to the new website and cannot find any details of how to register as an international nurse. Help please!!

Emma

We are moving to Queensland in November. I am going on my husbands visa which is a 457 and so am arranging my registration myself. Can anyone tell me if I have to register with the ANMC as well as the Queensland Nursing Council?

Emma x