Neonatal Nursing in Adelaide

[Guest Steph&Lee]

Hi everyone,

 

Are there any Neonatal Nurses on here that may shed a little light????

 

I am a neonatal nurse and have been emailing hospitals with neonatal units in SA. There doesn't seem to be any jobs available anywhere (not that we'r ready to go yet!). I even emailed a nurse recruitment agent and she said there wasn't many nursing jobs at all especially specialist areas like mine in SA at the moment due to a big restructure of hospitals and jobs which was happening over the next few months. Luckily, we wont be going til probably early next year now, but i would like to try get a job before i go.

 

Does anyone know about this 'restructure' or anyone working in neonates that can let me know??

 

many thanks

Steph:arghh:

[Guest midwifeonthemove]

Hi Steph,

It's has certainly seemed to me that there a very few jobs around. Even casual pools are fully staffed. I have been really shocked by this as have worked all over as a nurse/midwife and have never struggled so much for work.:-(

Tanya

[Guest Fluterby]

Hi Steph

 

My wife is a nurse and didnt struggle to get work, infact she got offered several jobs (RGN). Are you a RSCN? Do they have RSCN's here? It seems that any RN can choose to go into pediatrics or neonatal nursing.

 

David

[Guest midwifeonthemove]

I think if you are looking for perm full/part time work it is much easier. The other thing I was told by one of the Num's is that most of the private units want the neonatal nurses to be midwives as they prefer you to be able to rotate throughout the maternity unit into delivery suite etc

[Guest Steph&Lee]

Hi,

 

thanks for all your replies!

As i am a registered nurse and Adult trained i could always find work in that (dont want to go back to adult nursing...but if needs must???) until i can find work in neonates.

 

lets just hope this restructure sorts it all out and we'l find work easily!!

Steph x

[Guest Spratnat]

Hi. I am a peads nurse, but have have been in neonates for 14 years and have my neonates qualification. There is a chance my husband may be moving with his work to adelaide and if so i was wondering how easy it would be for me to find work out there. Did you manage to find a job in the end? How did you find the visa process? Did you end up moving over and if so how do you find it living over there? Nat x

[Guest Steph&Lee]

Hi. I am a peads nurse, but have have been in neonates for 14 years and have my neonates qualification. There is a chance my husband may be moving with his work to adelaide and if so i was wondering how easy it would be for me to find work out there. Did you manage to find a job in the end? How did you find the visa process? Did you end up moving over and if so how do you find it living over there? Nat x

 

Hi Nat,

 

I havent been on this sight for nearly 2 yrs (i think) so it was a surprise to have an email saying someone had replied to my blog.

 

Anyway,

When i was looking for work I emailed Flinders Medical Hospital and spoke to Jane Grantham (NNU Manager...luvly lady) and said we were coming out to live. I ended up having a 10mins telephone interview and they offered me a job then and there...which was a relief and nice to know i had a job to go to. They like experienced NNU staff especially with NICU training (which I had) which sounds like you have. I dont know if there are any jobs going but they always 'seem' to be taking people on and with your experience and qualifications i dont think you would have to worry about finding work in NNU. Drop them an email and see what they say. The wages are definitely worth it...you would be on a higher wage than me too because of your yrs of experience. Just think of your monthly salary now...you will earn that a fortnight here!! The neonatal unit here is luvly but a bit behind the times so dont expect to come here and it be all the 'mod cons' because Adelaide is the furthest behind for the hospitals in Australia. It takes some adjusting and re-training on how they do things here!!! The staff are luvly though and there is plenty of training opportunities. Someone mentioned on this blog that they like you to be Mid trained too....thats not true! Yes we do have some midwives now working on the unit or rotating on the unit...but it doesnt mean evryone does or has to do that.

The visa process, I thought, wasnt too bad in the end. We used Ian Harrop Agency based in London. We applied for permanent visas. The IELTS test was the most awful part of it. You would probably have to sit that too to enable AHPRA to look at you being registered here... it cost £120 each time when i did it. As a nurse you have to score at least 7 out of 9 on each subject (Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking) sounds easy eh?? Nope...its horrible!! I failed my first test by 0.5 of a point so then had to wait another 3 months before they could fit me in again. The paperwork for the visa can be a bit daunting...but our agent was brilliant and always filled as much as they could in for us. Its an amazing day when your visa is finally granted....especially when we had been planning it for 10yrs after visiting my relatives in Sydney 2002.

We moved out to Adelaide in May '12. Been here just a year now. Absolutely love it!!! Best thing we ever did. We didnt make as much money on selling our UK house as we thought we would but we had to take the gamble. By the time we had paid the solicitors for the house sale then $4200 for a 20ft container to transport our household furniture etc...then £3000 in flights...trust me...there weren't a fat lot left!!! But here we are I work on the NNU at Flinders earning money i never thought possible for me to earn....my husband is business manager at a car sales company down at Victor Harbor (beautiful place right by the beach...where he sometimes eats his lunch!!). Our eldest daughter is nearly 21 and she is enjoying a Tafe course and has a part time job as a bar/restaurant person, her boyfriend followed her out here so he lives with us too. Our youngest daughter is 15 and at Seaford 6-12 school and although its taken her a while to settle (although if you said to go back to UK she still would at the moment even though she loves it here...friends are very important at that age and she misses her UK mates) she is enjoying life here though, she snorkels with her friends in the summer and wants to study Marine Biology at Flinders Uni. We are just in the process of applying for our first mortgage here. We are looking to build a 4bed 2bathroom 2 garage house just up the road from here...its nice to know we can actually afford to do that.

When we first got here we thought it was really expensive as we only had the money we came with (before i started work in the June). A loaf of bread is anything from $2 - $5 and when you are converting it seems expensive. But now we are earning good money and the aussie dollar, I dont even look at the prices anymore. We have met some great friends here (most of them bloomin scottish or irish hahaha!! rather than Aussies). Most Sundays (in summertime) we spend at Aldinga Beach (google it...its one of the best beaches in SA). Pitch up a gazebo, a portable BBQ (essential!!) couple of kayaks for some fun and just stay on the beach all day. We were in the sea til 7pm one night as its like a warm bath...beautiful!

Adelaide is very beautiful.....if you have been to the Greek islands its a bit like an aussie version of the greek islands. Thats why we love it. Nightimes can be a bit quiet round here unless you go into the city. Restaurants shut early and you cant seem to eat out after about 9pm. We found that very strange at first. Most people tend to 'rock up' at each others houses for bbq's or get togethers rather than dining out....cheaper too!

 

I've probably waffled on enough for you.

But if you need any help or advice then dont hesitate to ask.

Hope it all goes well for you and your husband gets the job here...you certainly wouldnt look back if you get here.

Best of luck

Steph:wink:

[Guest Guest6899]

Bloody hell Steph,how long did it take you to post that, lol

[Caz and Ian]

Hi Steph

Hope you don't mind me messaging you, saw your reply to Nat and was gobsmacked as the first half of your story mimics mine. The IELTS bit, phoning Jane Grantham for info and the talk of greek islands , one of our fave places. Really great to hear bit more about the NNU at flinders as that where I am hoping to get a job, so daunting when you havnt even been to the hospital, just waiting to hear about my positive skills test hope fully in next two weeks. Then hoping to have visa by xmas this year (190), then maybe come over Jan/ feb time . I agree Jane is a lovely lady and was really helpful and she said just let me know when your coming over and I will telephone interview you, I didn't believe her but now I do. Your story has been a real inspiration to me and has spurred me on, because it does feel that it is costing me an arm and leg at mo. I assume you are still working there? I currently work in an small ish special care baby unit in the midlands but we stabilise two ITU babies a week averagely, and I have got my Neonatal intensive care course since 2004 ( did 3yrs in big itu unit but full on and wanted to go somewhere less hectic ). You do sit here questioning is it all worth it in your own comfortable life in the uk, but there has to be more, got a gut feeling on this one, gotta try and sell house next. Looking at living in Christies beach or port Noarlunga, any thought on either of these, got two small kids , 4 and 2yrs so feel so responsible for their happiness. Sorry for rambling, just got really excited reading your post.

Love Caz