visascreen的一些常见问题

关于visascreen的一些常见问题
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http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/samantha-j/article?mid=243&prev=259&next=198&l=f&fid=5



1960 年起，美國逐漸出現海外護士進入美國工作，移民局對於這些海外護理人員的學歷認證感到十分頭痛，於是在 1975 年，由移民局出面協同美國護理學會（American Nurses Association，ANA）、國家護理工會（the National League for Nursing，NLN）、各州護理局（U.S. Boards of Nursing）、美國醫院學會（the American Hospital Association，AHA）、美國醫學學會（the American Medical Association，AMA）、美國勞工局（the U.S. Department of Labor）及紐約州教育部門（the New York State Education Department）共同協商學歷認證標準，故成立 CGFNS （Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools）。



CGFNS 旗下另有二個機構：一為 ICHP （The International Commission on Healthcare Professions），另一為 ICD（The International Consultants of Delaware, Inc.），ICHP 專門負責 VisaScreen 認證，而 ICD 則專職審核海外學歷是否同等美國學歷。



美國國會於1996年立法（Section 343 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Responsibility Act of 1996）通過：Foreign Nurse需取得 VisaScreen才能在美國執業，而美國移民局則在2003年宣布：凡是在海外受教育的nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, physician assistants, medical technicians, medical laboratory technologists, speech language pathologists, and audiologists都需取得VisaScreen才能合法在美國工作。



VisaScreen 有三項審核標準：專業護理教育、通過 CGFNS 的 Certification Program 或 NCLEX-RN、及英文能力。



VisaScreen 專業護理教育的審核標準在 VisaScreen Handbook 第三頁中有清楚解釋“The educational review ensures that the applicant’s secondary and professional education meets all applicable statutory and regulatory requirements for the profession that the applicant intends to practice. It also makes sure that the applicant's education is comparable to the education of U.S. graduates in that same field who are applying for licenses.”申請者的專業護理教育必需等同於美國的專業護理教育，在第八頁更有詳細解釋

“Registered Nurses must meet all of the educational requirements as a Registered Nurse, CGFNS/ICHP requires evidence that you have:

• successfully completed a secondary school education that is separate from your nursing education,

• graduated from a government-approved, general nursing program of at least two years in length, and

• received a minimum number of hours of theoretical instruction and hours of clinical practice in each of the following:

• Nursing Care of the Adult (which includes Medical and Surgical Nursing)

• Maternal/Infant Nursing (excluding Gynecology)

• Nursing Care of Children (Pediatrics)

• Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing (excluding Neurology)“



許多朋友從 三年制護校－二年制護專 畢業，專業護理教育及臨床實習雖然嚴謹紮實，但由於三年制護校屬於secondary school education（高中），護校的護理教育學分 ICHP 不承認，只有二專的護理學分被認定為nursing education，如果申請者在二專期間沒有內外及產兒精五大科的授課及實習學分，將無法取得 VisaScreen 。

Congratulations again for your job! This is the link for visascreen, which is
required for green card. You may submit visascreen certificate later after you
file other forms for green card. Please read all related links on this page
and handbook.
http://www.cgfns.org/sections/prog/visa.shtml

There are 3 main forms:
1. Your own aplication
2. Education verification directly mailed from your nursing school (one page,
you need to fill out the upper part, school fills out the lower part), I also
attached my nursing school transcripts before our director sealed the envolope
because in handbook visascreen program requires this before and I do not know
their current policy
3. License verification directly mailed from GA board of nursing(one page, you
need to fill out the upper part, board fills out the lower part), in the
upper part, it requires license number, so you need to wait until you pass
NCLEX and get youR license number. GA board will email you license number 1-3
weeks after you pass NCLEX. You only need the number, not the real license for
visascreen. GA board asks for processing fees too.

others: photos (do not forget sign BOTH FRONT AND BACK), high school diploma
copy (no transcripst required for all applicants, if you graduated 10 years ago, the diploma will be waived later during the review process), fees

You may download these forms from the link or submit online (only the
application). I chose paper application, which I thought I could add some
notes to expain. However, the staff will input all info from your application
to their system, which took around 3 weeks. So I recommend you to submit
online application. If you choose submit online, the system will fill out the
upper part for 2 and 3 for you.

The only tip for visascreen is keeping calling them. Those staff are really
stupid and will tell you a different story everytime you call. So ask the
person's name, next time you call, you can mention that person's name.
Sometimes it helps.


Best wishes,