Billie-Jean’s decision to move to New Zealand “the easiest thing”

Billie-Jean McManus settled in New Zealand’s South Island in August 2008 with her husband Colin and the couple’s two children, William (13) and Jodie (6). One year later, she still believes that making the decision to move was “the easiest thing” she has ever done.

It was a bold move for this Scottish family, since they had never visited their new home country before packing their whole lives and flying down under. It all started when they attended the Opportunities New Zealand Expo two years ago. For Billie-Jean, “the expo was very useful”, as they had the chance to get help with organising the McManus’s visas.

The family received their permanent residency visas before their arrival in New Zealand and are determined to settle in New Zealand for good. “It’s been good so far. We didn’t want a city life because of the kids,” explains Billie-Jean, who has been working as a midwife at Southland Hospital since her arrival in the country. Along with a more quiet and relaxed lifestyle, New Zealand also offers this family “a lot more outdoor activities and sports after school”.

The children are fully adjusted to their new home country and have made many friends. Billie-Jean says that she never feels homesick, but that could be because the family keeps strong ties with their relatives in the UK. “We speak with the family every week on the internet, using the webcam and all. My kids send postcards to them all the time.”

As a midwife, Billie-Jean had to apply to the Midwifery Council for a practicing certificate, which she did before moving to New Zealand. “This involved doing an assignment of around 40 questions that pertained to competencies required to work here,” she explains. Billie Jean now holds a restricted practicing certificate, meaning she needs to work alongside another midwife if she works as an Lead Maternity Carer (LMC) and cannot prescribe any medication until she completes a NZ Midwifery course, which covers New Zealand midwifery legislation, practice and cultural issues, a prescribing course and a two-day course on the Treaty of Waitangi. The whole process of applying for the visas, albeit a little overwhelming at first, took only four months to complete. The best advice that Billie-Jean can give to people considering the same life changing move is to “get the help of a consultant, if they can afford it”.

-Story provided by Healthdownsouth