The “Nurses Pathway to work in Finland” project is a collaborative initiative involving five universities of applied sciences. It has worked with 125 nurses from 30 different countries. The training lasted an average of 12 months, and 70.4% of participants completed the program.

Before the Nurses Pathway to work in Finland project, individuals who had completed their nursing education outside the EU and Europe were required to undergo diploma equivalency procedures to work as nurses in Finland. Generally, they were advised to seek nursing education again. Even though it would have been possible to supplement the skills only partially, there were not sufficient study programs available for that purpose. A non-degree student could not access the necessary practical training. The entire qualification process was complicated and almost impossible for a nurse to navigate alone.

Every nurse must supplement their skills in certain areas such as pharmacology and calculations, clinical nursing, and the social and healthcare system. Additionally, individual skill enhancement is required based on specific needs.

Nurses need to have strong clinical and language skills

The goals of the project were to guide and support in Valvira’s process and in Finnish language acquisition, assessment of competencies, skill enhancement, evaluation of pilot programs and recommendations, and the description of the qualification pathway. These have been implemented through collaboration with universities of applied sciences and practical training placements.

The Finnish language proficiency level required by Valvira is quite high for a new beginner. Specifically, it requires an intermediate level grade 3, which corresponds to CEFR level B1. Even further, those who have passed the General Language Proficiency Test Level 3 or even 4 (i. e. YKI-testi) may have deficiencies in health sector-related language skills necessary to work as a nurse. To address these challenges the project has developed Finnish language material specified in healthcare, not only for language levels A2 and B1 but also to B2 which corresponds to Level 2, 3 and 4.

Within the scope of this project a licensed nurse is guided by a university of applied sciences. The training pathway for a licensed nurse has been shown in Figure 2. In basic training, the licensed nurse learns to understand the Finnish service system and the responsibilities of a nurse in Finland. However, before the training it is important to have sufficient proficiency in Finnish, especially in the specific language used in nursing. For this reason the online courses “Finnish in Health Care 1, 2 and 3” of Savonia are available for the nurses. At the same time, the nurse also familiarizes herself/himself with healthcare -related websites and evidence-based medical portals such as Terveysportti. A nurse should establish a language agreement before the training. The language agreement helps the workplace and instructors understand how well the nurse already speaks and writes Finnish language and where they still need support. At the workplace, the supervisor and colleagues understand that the nurse starting the training primarily needs to learn the Finnish language and Finnish nursing practices. The other step which a nurse must complete before starting the internship is to have the same level of competence. Through this project, nurses achieve competencies illustrated in Figure 3.

All these competencies are important, and a nurse must know and understand them well. At the end of their studies the candidates take a national competency-based exam.

In the “Sairaanhoitajaksi Suomessa” project, high-quality and effective online content for teaching professional Finnish in the healthcare sector is being produced for open publication. Savonia University of Applied Sciences is responsible for the online material for Finnish language enhancement in this project. Savonia UAS aimed to develop the independent, web-based learning materials such a high standard that immigrants entering the healthcare workforce can perform their duties fluently in Finnish, thereby ensuring the realization of patient safety. Background research and the previous experiences of Finnish language teachers led to the decision to use Easy Finnish* in the online materials targeted to A2 and B1, levels 2 and 3.

The work of nurses rotates around verbal interactions with patients, family members, and colleagues. Almost 50 situations requiring spoken nursing interaction were presented in online courses as audios, dialogs and also adapted Easy Finnish versions as texts to ensure that their key content could be understood by learners with developing language skills at the A2-B1 levels.

In conclusion, in this project at Savonia UAS, 21 students were admitted, of which 6 dropped out in the early stages of their studies because of personal reasons. Ten graduated in December 2024, one graduated as early as June 2024 and four are continuing their studies at the beginning of 2025.

Consequently, a person who has worked as a nurse in their home country or licensed as a nurse is integrated into Finland’s work environment more quickly with the help of this project, learning Finnish without losing their professional experience.

“Nurses Pathway to work in Finland” project is funded by SECLE, The Service Center for Continuous Learning and Employment, known in Finnish as JOTPA and coordinated by Laurea UAS. In addition to Laurea and Savonia there are Turku UAS, Tampere UAS and Oulu UAS as partners. The project ends in March 2025.

The development work continues in two new nationals projects coordinated by Metropolia UAS: SAILA 1 and SAILA 2.

* Easy Finnish is a form of Finnish where the language has been adapted so that it is easier to read and understand in terms of content, vocabulary and structure. It is targeted at people who have difficulties with reading or understanding standard language. – Selkokeskus 2023

Authors:

Sema Tuna Torunoglu

Teacher

sema.tunatorunoglu@savonia.fi

Savonia UAS

Merja Natunen

Nursing Teacher and Project Manager

merja.natunen@savonia.fi

Savonia UAS

Kukka-Maaria Raatikainen

Senior Lecturer in Finnish Language and Communication

kukka-maaria.raatikainen@savonia.fi

Savonia UAS

References:

1) Raatikainen, K-M., Markoff, E. Natunen, M. 2024. Selkokieli kehittyvän kielitaidon tukena terveysalan ammattisuomen verkko materiaaleissa. https://www.savonia.fi/artikkelit/selkokieli-kehittyvan-kielitaidon-tukena-terveysalan-ammattisuomen-verkkomateriaaleissa/

2) Raatikainen, K-M., Markoff, E. Natunen, M. 2024. Laillistuvan sairaanhoitajan harjoittelut selkeällä kielellä. 2024. https://www.savonia.fi/artikkelit/laillistuvan-sairaanhoitajan-harjoittelut-selkealla-kielella/

3) Raatikainen, K-M., Natunen, M. 2024. Ulkomaisen tutkinnon suorittaneille sairaanhooitajille kehitetään uutta laillistamisväylää. https://www.savonia.fi/artikkelit/ulkomaisen-tutkinnon-suorittaneille-sairaanhoitajille-kehitetaan-uutta-laillistamisvaylaa/

4) Raatikainen, K-M. 2024. Oppimisanalytiikka terveysalan suomen oppijoiden verkkokursseilla. https://www.savonia.fi/sosiaali-ja-terveysala/oppimisanalytiikkaa-terveysalan-suomen-oppijoiden-verkkokursseilla/

5) Selkokeskus 2023. Easy Finnish. Kehitysvammaliitto. https://selkokeskus.fi/in-english/easy-finnish/

6) Tiikkainen, L. 2024. Sairaanhoitajaksi Suomessa loppuwebinaari.

7) Yleissairaanhoitajan (180 op) osaamisvaatimukset ja sisällöt. https://blogi.savonia.fi/ylesharviointi/2020/01/15/yleissairaanhoitajan-180-op-osaamisvaatimuslauseet-ja-sisallot-julkaistu/