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COVID-19 Update

Approved COVID-Ready DLI

OMNI College is an approved COVID-Ready Designated Learning Institution by the government of Canada.  You can find OMNI College on the list of approved DLI’s here.  OMNI has been a Designated Learning Institution since June 2014 (OMNI DLI#O19347439002), and as of April 2021 became also a COVID-Ready approved DLI as well.  

 

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Health & Safety Measures

The health and safety of our students, staff, and faculty are of utmost priority at OMNI College.  

In order to continue operating in as safe an environment as possible, we have created a robust safety plan and implemented measures that will minimize the risk of COVID-19 at OMNI College.  Please read our complete COVID-19 Safety Plan here.

OMNI College has also added Communicable Disease Prevention protocol into its existing Health & Safety Policy.  This is laid out in the Student and Staff Handbooks for everyone to receive before beginning a study program or employment at the college.

Masks Still Required

It is OMNI College’s policy that any individuals coming to the OMNI campus must continue to wear a mask (non-medical) on the premises.   The only exception is in the private offices of staff and faculty when only one person is present in the office.

Visitors

Visitors may visit after school hours (between 3pm – 5pm Monday to Friday) to limit capacity in spaces and ensure physical distance from others.  Please call ahead to make an appointment at (604) 279-1800.  Visitors must enter via the main entrance (unit #3130) and will be screened prior to entry.  

 

All visitors, staff, students and faculty – Please make sure that if you feel any of the below symptoms you do not come to OMNI College:

Excerpted from the canada.ca website:

“Symptoms of COVID-19 can vary from person to person. They may also vary in different age groups.

Some of the more commonly reported symptoms include:

  • new or worsening cough
  • shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
  • temperature equal to or over 38°C
  • feeling feverish
  • chills
  • fatigue or weakness
  • muscle or body aches
  • new loss of smell or taste
  • headache
  • gastrointestinal symptoms (abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting)
  • feeling very unwell

Children tend to have abdominal symptoms and skin changes or rashes.

Symptoms may take up to 14 days to appear after exposure to COVID-19.”

Medical Resources

Should you experience any of the above systems and need to visit a testing centre, please see the list of nearby testing sites on our Medical page or on the BCCDC website directly.   

Onsite Nursing Labs

While classroom sessions have shifted online to virtual classrooms, the hands-on lab and nursing skills practice must continue to be done in-person, onsite at OMNI College. 

Students will practice in our newly-expanded lab space, where all hospital beds, demonstration stations, and equipment have been properly separated so they remain 6 feet/2 meters apart and social distancing may be observed.  

Students are required to wipe down all lab equipment and materials after each use. Disinfectant is provided in the labs and they are readily available at multiple sanitization stations throughout the campus.  Lab faculty also conduct a thorough cleaning of all equipment used at the end of each day.

International Students 

International students must qualify as a fully-vaccinated traveller in order to come to study in Canada. 

To prepare and support all international students coming to Canada and who are enrolled in OMNI College’s programs, we have prepared a detailed COVID-19 International Student Arrival and Quarantine Guide.  This guide includes a pre-arrival checklist and all the steps and information needed for a student to take the journey to Canada.  The guide details preparations for before and during travel, upon arrival in Canada, and during and after self-quarantine (if required).

It is imperative that international students share the details of their travel plans with their OMNI Admissions Advisor so that appropriate precautions and guidance can be provided.   

You can also access up-to-date information from the Canadian government website here: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/study-canada/study-permit/prepare-arrival.html

All fully vaccinated travellers, including international students, arriving into Canada from anywhere outside of Canada or the USA, maybe randomly be selected for mandatory on-arrival COVID testing.  Read the full details here: https://travel.gc.ca/travel-covid/travel-restrictions/visitors-workers-students

International students qualify for free COVID-19 vaccines while studying in Canada.  Read more here

Daily Health Checks

Daily self-administered health checks are a personal responsibility.  All staff, students, and visitors should ask themselves the health self-assessment questions posted at the campus entry prior to accessing the campus.  Individuals experiencing any symptoms should not enter, return/stay home, consult the BC COVID-19 Self Assessment Tool to determine if testing is needed, and contact 811 or their healthcare provider for medical advice as necessary.  

Everyone must use only the main entrance (unit 3130) when entering.   

Vaccination Requirements

All students working part-time during studies in long-term care and assisted living facilities in British Columbia will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19.  This provincial health order INCLUDES students attending clinical placements and co-op work experiences of their study program.  All OMNI College students must be vaccinated prior to beginning the work experience components of their programs.  

 

Our Safety Plan and Communicable Disease Prevention protocol follows provincial and federal guidelines under the Quarantine Act and has been developed in accordance with the Worksafe BC COVID-19 Safety Plan and Communicable Disease Guide.  

For more information, please see our complete COVID-19 Safety Plan.

 

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July 2020 – a message from our Founder

Hello fellow nurses,

I’m incredibly proud that after 20 years of helping Internationally-Educated Nurses fulfill their dreams of becoming nurses in Canada, we continue to adapt and prove our resilience regardless of what industry and environmental changes come our way.  In March, at the peak of the COVID outbreak in our city, our campus was closed but all in-progress programs were successfully shifted to virtual classroom platforms and students were able to continue their studies.  Today, as the next stage, I’m pleased to share that our campus will be re-opening on a gradual scale as of today, July 15, 2020

 
 

Although we will be resuming campus operations, we are doing so with a few noticeable changes.  These changes were required in order to take the necessary precautions that will continue to:

  • keep our staff and students safe
  • maintain the ongoing smooth operation of the campus
  • remain focused on ensuring students are making progress in their training 

These changes include a reduced campus footprint but a larger nursing lab space, a new entrance area, and sanitation policies and procedures that will control the total number of people on campus at any given time.  Much of our classroom training will remain online, but students and instructors will be happy to get back to their hands-on nursing practice done in our expanded, more spacious lab. 

I’m proud of all of the staff who came together over these last months in minimizing the impact of COVID as much as possible.  Together, we will continue to make it through.

 

These times are unprecedented.  Sometimes it can be tough to keep moving forward when the future is so unknown.  Still today, nobody knows yet how exactly the outcome of this pandemic will impact the future of international education for nurses.  However, what we do know is that we remain as passionate as ever in training foreign educated nurses for Canada and making each of them successful.  We are prouder than ever to be in the country of Canada, particularly in our province of BC, where our leaders have done an amazing job in handling this worldwide pandemic.  Our province has successfully flattened the curve and is now in Phase 3 of our government’s reopening plan.  All of us; students, staff, alumni, that are a part of the OMNI family in Canada, are the safest and the healthiest possible.    

We continue to make decisions based on our core values of Integrity, Support, Quality and Family.  And we remain steadfast in our mission: to deliver exceptional programs that prepare students for a successful cultural and educational transition into the workforce; to be recognized worldwide as a credible, responsible and caring education institution.  

We look forward to welcoming staff and students back to campus after July 15, 2020, and for all of us to get back to onsite operations in our reorganized study and work spaces.  

May you and your loved ones around the world remain safe, calm and healthy. 

Best wishes to all,

Ron Burke, RN