My name is Bruce F Macnee and I am a Registered Nurse from the USA. I arrived here in Sept, 2012 and the process to come to NZ took me about 4-6 months. The easiest part was working with Prudence Thomson from Accent Health Recruitment. The most challenging part of the process was assembling the sometimes ridiculous documentation required by various government agencies.
I've found the clinical aspect of theatre nursing very similar to OR nursing in Michigan. All the same products and machines are used, but sometimes are called different names. Instrumentation is the same, but again they are sometimes called something different here. I do have some trouble understanding some people here. Many Kiwis are very soft-spoken, but it could be my 61year old ears as well.
My first impressions of NZ were that it was more expensive than we initially thought, however, the kindness and generosity of all the people we've met was the best.
What I miss the most is we are far from the rest of our family.
My advice if you are planning to come to NZ is “Just do it!!” There are lots of things to see and do and experience. I can’t say enough about all the people at Accent Health Recruitment. They have gone above and beyond in helping us to find a place to live. Also with getting our new home set up, bank accounts, utilities, etc and showing us around the city to get oriented.
Thanks so much to Prudence and all her crew!
