Hundreds of Americans vacationed this spring on Vancouver Island for Nanaimo Infusion, and now the event's creator is using that network to support American health care workers immigrating to Canada.
Tod Maffin told the News Bulletin that during Infusion weekend in April, many visiting Americans were health-care workers and some were looking for a safe country to move to.
"In the original Discord there were channels for general talk, there's channels for people who had pets, who were staying in Living Forest…" he said. "We had a channel for 'Move to Canada' and that become one of our most busy channels."
Following the event, he opened a new Discord called 'Tod Maffin - From Far and Wide,' which became the new host to a series of channels dedicated for those interested in moving, and he said the interest is there – particularly in the health-care sector.
"We need school teachers up here, there's a lot of people we need, we need some trades up here as well. I think it just happens to have focused on health care."
Soon the chat was joined by two Island Health recruiters, an immigration consultant, as well as two health-care workers who had previously immigrated to Canada from the U.S. and were able to offer advice. Maffin said he isn't recruiting health-care workers in any official capacity, and it's just something that came from networking organically. One of the recruiters Maffin met at a grocery store, and they exchanged contact information.
"In a way I think it works better being unofficial," he said. "When you look at how the Infusion weekend rolled out, that wasn't an event that an organization put on, it was just one stupid video and then the whole community rallied around it. I feel like we can kind of replicate that now toward the goal of getting health-care workers on Vancouver Island."
Maffin estimated a couple of dozen members who expressed they joined specifically because were interested in getting information on moving, and a small handful who reported accepting job offers.
"It's been really heart-filling to see Canada through other people's eyes. I think we take for granted what we have here on Vancouver Island and across Canada. Not only the beautiful parts about being on the Island, but just the general safety and security we enjoy while [in] the U.S. that seems to slip away from them," Maffin said. "Every time I'm in there, talking with these people, it's a real reset for me on realizing the rights that we have, the freedom that we have."
One American nurse who recently accepted a job at Island Health, Brandy Frye, said Nanaimo Infusion is part of why she chose the community to be her new home.
"I thought that was so cool and I just [thought], 'I really want to work there.' So that's why I applied for a position and I got an interview, and I just accepted my job offer two weeks ago," Frye said. "I'm going through the expedited process for licensing."
Other reasons she chose Nanaimo were the location by the ocean, affordability compared to other major cities, and the local swim team which she thinks will be a good fit for her 13-year-old competitive swimmer son.
"I just want to raise my son in a safe place and a place where I feel like he can thrive and go and do whatever he wants with his life. I don't know if that's possible here in the U.S. anymore – in fact I know it's not. There's no going back."
In a statement, Island Health said it believes the most effective recruitment campaigns are a collaborative effort between multiple partners.
"As we continue our work supporting the province’s co-ordinated U.S. recruitment campaign, we are incredibly thankful and appreciative of community-based efforts like the one being led by Mr. Maffin," Island Health said. "Our recruitment teams are always excited to answer questions and share information with people interested in joining Island Health through our online platforms and regular recruitment channels."
Nanaimo Infusion's website has also been changed to include immigration information aimed at health-care workers. It can be viewed at http://nanaimoinfusion.ca. For career opportunities with Island Health, the health authority recommends people go to http://careers.islandhealth.ca.
