Nurses at BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre are part of a unique team in British Columbia, and work in a creative and challenging environment that draws on both traditional clinical methodologies, as well as the latest technologies and innovative health care and management techniques.
BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre is part of the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) and is the province’s only hospital devoted to caring for women, gender-diverse people, newborns and their families. The hospital is Canada’s largest birthing centre with an average of 6,500 births annually and serves as the quaternary centre for neonatal care in BC, caring for the sickest and tiniest babies in our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
As integral members of the hospital’s interdisciplinary team of health care professionals, nurses support health services delivered through inpatient, ambulatory care and outreach programs. BC Women’s offers innovative job opportunities in clinical practice, education, research, professional leadership and operational management.
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Watch the “I am your nurse” video to learn about nursing careers with PHSA, including BC Women's Hospital + Health Centre.
Student Nurses
The Employed Student Nurse (ESN) Program provides a nursing employment opportunity to work in a clinical setting and gain 250 to 400 hours of hands-on experience with pay. These hours help consolidate your theory and clinical skills, build on your nursing practice, and participate as a team member. In many cases, you can also apply your earned seniority toward your first registered nurse (RN) or registered psychiatric nurse (RPN) job with us.
New Graduate Nurses
BC Women's Hospital + Health Centre welcomes "new grad" registered nurses (RNs) and registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs). Nurses provide specialty care in a variety of clinical environments, program and service areas: - Families in Recovery (FIR) Unit
- Postpartum Unit
- Birthing Unit
- Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
All new graduates hired as an RN or RPN will be placed into a regular or temporary position, with a minimum of 0.7 to 1.0 FTE hours for the first six months of employment (FTE = full-time employee, so 0.7 FTE would provide 70% of full-time hours).
The program is available to new nurses for the first 18 months after nursing graduation. This opportunity works to consolidate your nursing practice and start a career specializing in either pediatrics, child and youth mental health, perinatal, oncology or adult mental health nursing.
New grads also benefit from in-depth orientation and training, mentorship by experienced team members and a warm welcome!
Learn more about new grad nursing
International Nurses
BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre welcomes applications and inquiries from nurses living outside of Canada. Internationally educated nurses are encouraged to learn more about qualifications for nursing positions at BC Women's.
Learn more about international nursing applications
Birthing Suites / Obstetrical Clinics
The Labour and Delivery Unit at BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre provides labour, birth and post-birth care for birthing parents and newborns. This includes the Urgent Care Centre, delivery suites for low and high-risk parents/babies, single room maternity care, and a surgical suite for caesarean births. Nurses provide evidence-based and inclusive care to both our low and high-risk perinatal patients. Our team is skilled in the care of critical obstetric patients, and we have a maternal transport team that assists in the preparation and safe transfer of high-risk pregnant people.
The Antepartum Unit within BC Women’s provides care to people who have need of specialized care for themselves and/or their unborn babies. Pregnant people with complications such as high blood pressure and premature labour are admitted into the 15-bed, high-risk Antepartum Unit.
The Postpartum Units within BC Women’s provide comprehensive, supportive care to approximately 6,500 parents and newborns per year in a parent- and family-centred environment. As part of a commitment to being baby friendly, healthy newborns are cared for in the same room as their parents. On the Postpartum Units, nurses place an emphasis on education around newborn care, normal postpartum changes in the parent, and chest and breastfeeding. Our team provides information to the parent’s local community health department to ensure a continuum of care as the family transitions home.
Gynecology Surgical Suites / Operating Rooms
The Surgical Services Unit provides comprehensive access to elective surgery for a wide variety of gynecologic health issues including infertility, fibroid/polyp removal, hysterectomy, endometriosis, pelvic pain and other conditions. Our team are experts in minimally invasive surgical techniques that allow for the completion of complex surgeries through small incisions in the abdomen or through the vagina. Our area is unique given its specific focus to optimizing gynecologic care for the patients of British Columbia.
There are a number of different positions and educational opportunities offered within the unit. These include roles such as a surgical daycare nurse, operating room nurse or post-anesthetic care unit (PACU) nurse. We are a fast-paced, culturally sensitive, patient- and family-centred unit with highly skilled nurses who provide care to patients throughout their surgical journey.
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at BC Women's Hospital is the quaternary referral centre for the province, providing specialized neonatal intensive care for the most critically ill and high-risk infants with complex medical and surgical needs in BC and Yukon. Our leading practice in Mother Baby Care (MBC) provides the care of mothers and newborns requiring Level 2 NICU care in the same room from the same nurse. In addition to the NICU, the hospital is home to the Neonatal Follow-Up Clinic (NFU), which provides comprehensive neurodevelopmental assessments for high-risk newborns in the first five years of life.
The Neonatal Program works in partnership with the other NICUs across the province to ensure a coordinated network of neonatal care for high-risk newborns. Transport nurses and respiratory therapists provide infant transport to and from other NICUs in the province, and the resuscitation team of nurses, respiratory therapists, and physicians attend high-risk deliveries and urgent care scenarios.
Nursing and respiratory therapy practice at BC Women's offers many opportunities for professional development in leadership, education and supporting and advancing best practice. The Neonatal Program is committed to supporting regular and ongoing learning through dedicated education days, interdisciplinary education including simulation, and a variety of workshops or conference opportunities.
Families in Recovery (FIR)
Since 2003, the Families In Recovery (FIR) Unit is the first of its kind in Canada, combining a care unit and a provincial resource that supports the most acute and medically complex antepartum and postpartum patients. These patients receive care from an interdisciplinary team, including nurses, specialized perinatal physicians who are also addiction medicine specialists, social workers, patient and family advisors, and the Indigenous Health team.
The FIR Unit provides inpatient stabilization and interdisciplinary support to antepartum and postpartum patients who use substances. Our program focuses on medical stabilization for both birthing persons and infants while supporting a holistic, family-centred approach to care throughout pregnancy, labour and delivery, and postpartum. The approach to care within FIR is grounded in self-determination, health promotion, capacity building, and connection for families.
The FIR team is committed to providing equitable, culturally safer and compassionate care through principle-based practices, including Indigenous cultural safety and trauma- and violence-informed practices, harm reduction, recovery-oriented practice and equity-oriented care.
BC Women’s Hospital + Health Centre welcomes applications and inquiries from nurses living outside of Canada. Internationally educated nurses are encouraged to learn more about qualifications for nursing positions at BC Women's.
Learn more about international nursing applications
