Internationally educated nurse wins appeal to work in Manitoba

A nurse who received her education in the Philippines and was later licenced to work in Ontario and Quebec has won an appeal to work in Manitoba, according to a notice of decision by the Council of the College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba, reviewed by CTV News Winnipeg.

The decision requires the College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba to register Ronna Sigua to work as a nurse in Manitoba, a decision her lawyer suggests could have impacts on other internationally educated nurses applying to work in Manitoba.

“Of course, Ms. Sigua is pleased she was successful in her appeal, but notes that for her this litigation has been time-consuming, stressful, expensive, and in her opinion, completely unnecessary” said Evan Edwards, Sigua’s lawyer, in an emailed statement. “Further, while the college was fighting this case, the province has been deprived of the much-needed services of a number of fully qualified registered nurses.”

Sigua first applied to the college for registration in 2013.

According to the decision, she was advised she would be required to complete a basic nursing education program and that she would require more education than what was available through the Bridge to Canadian Nursing Program or the Red River College RN Refresher Program.

Fast forward to March 2021. Sigua’s second application to the college was denied and she was told she would be required to undergo a Clinical Competence Assessment as part of the registration process, despite being registered to work in Quebec and also in Ontario where she was registered as a mobility applicant in 2020.

Sigua did not undergo the assessment and instead appealed the college’s decision, arguing she is entitled to be registered in Manitoba as a labour mobility applicant.

The college argued that because she was a previous applicant who was required to complete additional training, it was entitled to impose the requirements to assess and identify any gaps in her nursing practice and determine what, if any, additional education may be needed.

A panel of the Council of the College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba sided with Sigua in a decision released on Aug. 11 on the basis that she’s certified to work in the province under a domestic trade agreement.

“It is the decision of the panel that these provisions apply to Ms. Sigua,” the panel wrote in the decision. “Therefore, we allow her appeal and direct that the CRNM (College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba) register Ms. Sigua as a registered nurse in Manitoba.”

The panel noted it received a compliance order under The Labour Mobility Act from Manitoba Health Minister Audrey Gordon dated July 26 only after it reached its decision on Sigua’s appeal. The order states, in part, that the college must not require applicants, who are in good standing as a registered nurse in another jurisdiction in Canada, to take the Clinical Competence Assessment to be registered as a nurse in Manitoba.

Edwards said the Labour Mobility Agreement is premised on provincial nursing colleges recognizing and respecting qualifications from other provinces.

“Accordingly, when nurses apply for registration as a nurse in a different province, they are not required to take lengthy assessments and exams testing competence,” Edwards said. “The legal arguments used by the college to justify their position were all rejected by the appeal panel in a unanimous decision which found those arguments to be both incorrect and unreasonable.”

While Gordon would not comment on individual cases, the Health Minister told CTV News in a statement she is looking forward to working with the CRNM, along with other nursing colleges and unions to facilitate the entry of internationally-educated nurses to practise in Manitoba in a safe and supportive way.

"The order we issued to the College opens the door to nurses who are registered in other Canadian provinces but have experienced difficulty being recognized here in Manitoba," Gordon said in the statement.

"We will leave no stone unturned in exploring options to fill nursing vacancies in Manitoba, including through programs like this IENs in Manitoba project, as well as recruitment process improvements, retention strategies, training spot increases and immigration efforts."