As nurses, we deal with emotionally charged situations every day. Whether it’s a patient’s difficult diagnosis, family dynamics, or the stress of a high-pressure environment, emotional self-management is key to maintaining your joy in the role.

The First Winter. Its an interesting time for us expats and I know I was ill-prepared for it when I first arrived in the early December of 2018 having come from a hot, humid Australian summer. We flew into Heathrow and went straight to London to then catch a train to our destination, unfortunately it was late, a crisp low of 4 degrees, and the train we needed was cancelled. We really weren’t dressed for the occasion and with no luck finding a hotel nearby we made the bold decision to pay £300 for a London Cab to take us on the long journey. Skip to the Christmas season and a little outing to a village outdoor event and I soon regretted my decision to wear ballet flats as the temperatures plummeted leading to me having to put my gloves on my toes until I could get my socks from the house.

Displaced, isolated, lonely. They are not the typical words you would associate with someone that has made the decision to live in a different country from their origin. However the fact remains that this is how many expats and internationally educated nurses feel in their first six to twelve months of moving abroad.

I do believe that both employer and potential employees try to put their best foot forward with the very best of intentions and now that I have been on both sides as expat nurse and interviewer, I feel that this needs to change to allow for the realities of the expat journey and experience to be shared so that people can make truly informed decisions. If you are a nurse considering expat, I will share below questions I wish I had asked before I accepted my offer – after all, interviews should be mutually informative.

It all begins with an idea.

It all begins with an idea.