A Comprehensive Guide on How to Become a Foreign Nurse in Denmark

The beautiful city of Denmark is a great country for you to work as a nurse. Their world-class level of living, and distinct culture are other factors that may convince you to choose to work in Denmark. Aside from those, the country also offers attractive salaries and benefits, and a wide-range of job opportunities for aspiring nurses. In order to become a nurse in the country, you will be required to register with the Danish Patient Safety Authority, and you will have to learn how to speak in Danish. You must prove your knowledge in the language by taking a language proficiency examination.

About the Country

Denmark’s vibrant cities, magnificent landscape, and great quality of life make it an appealing option for you to migrate to. For starters, Denmark has a world-class level of living. Its cosmopolitan, young cities, great and diverse natural regions, cleanliness, and low crime rate all combine to make this Scandinavian country high on the list of options for you to choose from. One of the advantages of living in Denmark is its central location, wherein it is located in the north of Germany and southwest of Sweden. 

Denmark is also known for being the home of Hans Christian Anderson, who is the author of many of the famous classic children’s books, such as The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, and The Princess and the Pea. 

Many individuals find the working culture in Denmark to be remarkably different from that of other English-speaking countries. The Danes are proud of their flat management style, which appreciates all employees and places a premium on cooperation. In fact, employees and supervisors call one another by their first names, and employee forums are the standard, with every employee getting an opportunity to weigh in on most decisions. A good balance between work and life is also ingrained in Danish work culture, which is unparalleled in the world. As a result of this degree of empowerment and such a strong sense of autonomy in the workplace, Danish employees rank among the most productive and hardest-working in the world.

If you wish to work as a nurse in the country, you don’t have to worry about being alone in the country. You may reach out to the Filipino Nurses Association-Nordic (FiNAN), which is a non-profit organization that strives to collaborate closely with the Filipino nurses in Nordic countries, in order to determine their needs and concerns. These are essential so that the policymakers and decision-makers could comprehend them.

Type of Nurses

As a nurse in Denmark, you may choose from various types of nursing jobs. These include registered nurses and specialized nurses. The responsibilities of a registered nurse include monitoring patients, dispensing drugs, maintaining records, discussing with healthcare providers, educating patients, as well as other important tasks that involve patient care. You may choose to take further studies and acquire a specialization to become a specialized nurse. In fact, there is a wide-range of nursing specializations that you could choose from. Some of these specializations are cardiovascular nursing, orthopedic nursing, community health nursing, oncology nursing, critical care nursing, critical care pediatric nursing, neuroscience nursing, medical-surgical nursing, gastroenterology nursing, and emergency nursing.

Salary

Based on salaryexplorer.com, nurses in Denmark earn an average monthly salary of 39,300 or an annual salary of 471,000 DKK (₱3,615,848.99). As a nurse, your salary is highly dependent on the number of years of experience that you have, as well as your skills, qualifications, and credentials. For instance, an entry level nurse in the country earns an average salary of 25,200 DKK (₱193,459.44) per month, whereas a senior nurse could earn as much as 75,600 DKK (₱580,378.31) monthly.

Demand for Nurses

Due to the great demand for nurses in Denmark, nurses in the country are given attractive salaries. The nursing shortage has already affected the quality of patient care provided to the patients, wherein adverse consequences resulted from this. This is due to the fact that nurses play a vital role in the healthcare system, therefore a shortage of nurses could negatively impact their system. With these, you may have higher chances of landing a nursing job in Denmark.

Hospitals

Denmark is now constructing highly specialized hospitals, all of which are designed as the future hospitals, taking into account the evolving role of hospitals in our future healthcare system, as more Danish healthcare services are given through primary care. As a result, the project of modernizing Denmark’s future hospital capacity is centered on continuous specialization and flexibility.

Some of the best hospitals in Denmark include Aarhus Universitetshospital, Rigshospitalet – København, Odense Universitetshospital, Aalborg Universitetshospital, Herlev Hospital, Rigshospitalet – Glostrup, and Hvidovre Hospital.

Educational Requirement

In order to work as a nurse in Denmark, you must have a bachelor’s degree in nursing, and a valid nursing license issued by a recognized institution in your country of origin. Your license must be recognized by the country.

Experience

To become a nurse in Denmark, you must have a minimum of 2 years of clinical experience as a nurse.

Application

In order to become a foreign nurse in Denmark, you must apply for Danish authorization. You will have to fill out an application, which you must send electronically to the Danish Patient Safety Authority (or Styrelsen for Patientsikkerhed). You must also send documents that prove your qualifications through mail. These documents must be sent in two copies, which include the original documents, and a photocopy of your documents. Although they will accept diplomas obtained from outside of Denmark, individuals with diplomas obtained from an EU country may have better chances of landing a job in the country.

Examinations

 Language Proficiency Examination

In order to work as a foreign nurse in Denmark, you must be able to speak the official language of the country, which is Danish. This is important because you will need to speak with your co-workers, and patients, as well as their families. You may have to speak in Danish when asking your patients how they are feeling, and you may have to understand the language when following the orders of the doctors. These are just some of the tasks that will require you to communicate effectively with the Danish language. With this, foreign nurses are required to take the “Prøve i dansk 3”, which is also known as the Danish 3 Exam. 

Prøve i dansk 3 (Danish Language 3 Examination)

The Danish Language 3 examination consists of a written and oral part. The written part of the text aims to examine the reading comprehension. In order to fully understand the questions, you may have to know the basics of the systems and customs of a Danish society. In addition, it is important that you also know the customs and norms in the country. You will be given a total of 2 hours and 30 minutes to complete the two parts of the written section. The oral section, on the other hand, will be divided into two, and it will be taken individually. The first part will consist of a presentation and interview regarding the topics assigned to you, while in the second part, you will be required to describe a situation, and you will undergo another interview.

In order to qualify to become a foreign nurse in the country, you are required to have a minimum score of 10 in the oral communications section, and you must obtain a minimum score of 7 in each of the reading comprehension and written communication exams. It is important to keep in mind that you must have passed the exam less than 12 months prior to registration, unless you will be able to prove that you stayed in Denmark during the period after you have passed the said exam.

Upon accomplishing the aforementioned procedures, you will acquire a temporary authorization to work, which is required for you to be able to complete the “evalueringsansættelse”. This is intended for employment for adaptation and training purposes. During this time, you will be monitored and assessed if you are fit to work in Denmark. Once you have completed the training period, your employer will contact the Danish Patient Safety Authority, and report the verdict on whether they will recommend you to acquire permanent work in the country. If you are given a positive result, then you will be registered as a nurse in the country as the Danish Patient Safety Authority grants you the permanent authorization to work. Good luck!

References

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