Placement Requirements

Your choice of career path requires you to meet specific health and safety standards as outlined by Ontario law. The Ontario government and the organizations offering you a practice placement have mandated specific medical and non-medical requirements that must be met by you, before you can begin your practice placement. These measures are there to protect you, your co-workers and those that you will serve in your placement. The Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing is committed to meeting standards of practice in nursing by ensuring that students attain and maintain required certifications and meet recommended immunization standards.

Specific placement requirements, forms/documents, and deadlines are available to students by logging into OWL (go to the Placement Information site).

For more information about our School placement requirements, please review our FAQs.

Questions about placement requirements should be directed to:

  • Michelle Wagler
    Placement Coordinator, Requirements & Information
    Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing
    Health Sciences Addition, Room H138
Requirement Submission Guidelines Police Record Check (VSS)
Immunizations HSPnet
Certifications Confidentiality Agreements
Respiratory Protections (Fit Mask) Placement Injury / Incident Reporting

Important Guidelines for Document Submission:

Unless otherwise noted, students must submit most School requirement documentation directly to ParaMed (London) during their appointment before the required deadline. Information about booking appointments and associated fees is available on the ParaMed Requisite website. The ParaMed Pre-Placement forms are available in Owl. Students are strongly advised to keep original documents as well as copies of all forms.

Immunizations:

There are required immunizations for all nursing students prior to any contact with patients/clients. This is to ensure the safety of both students and patients. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that all immunization requirements have been met and to maintain a current immunization status throughout the program. Documented proof of immunization is mandatory and may be requested by our practice partners. Students must be prepared to show their immunization documentation to agencies upon request.

Failure to maintain the required immunization status will result in the student not being able to participate in the placement, thereby jeopardizing completion of the course.

Certifications:

Standard First Aid: undergraduate students must present their valid Standard First Aid certificate to ParaMed (London) by the prerequisite deadline date for 2nd year or CTF level 1 placements. This certification does not need to be renewed.

CPR - Health Care Provider (HCP): undergraduate students are required to recertify annually (regardless of their card expiration date) and certification must be valid for the entire duration of each placement. This course is designed for healthcare providers who have a duty to respond to medical emergencies. Level C CPR certification is not acceptable, students must obtain CPR at the Healthcare Provider level.

Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS): students must provide current documentation of a current WHMIS course. Students may take WHMIS from any provider (e.g. place of employment), and Western provides this training for students as well. Students may complete Western University's WHMIS - Basic online training with a minimum mark of 80%. WHMIS must be completed every 3 years.

Respiratory Protection (Fit Mask):

To protect students from infection when providing care or service to patients/clients with acute respiratory infections, and to comply with health region policies, all nursing students must be fitted with a respiratory mask and educated on its use when required during the program.

Mask fit testing is valid for two years. If you lose or gain a significant amount of weight or have dental/facial surgery, you will need to have your mask fit test redone. Male students must be clean shaven in order to be properly fitted. Students may be tested at the provider of their choice and this service is also available to our students through ParaMed (London). It is recommended that students be tested for one of the following mask types: 3M 8210, 3M 1870, or 3M 1860S.

Police Record Check / Vulnerable Sector Screening (VSS):

To be eligible for placements, students must complete a Police Record Check and Vulnerable Sector Screening (VSS) annually and submit original documentation directly to ParaMed (London). Police Record Checks must be valid for the duration of each placement. Police Record Checks can be obtained through the London Police Service (with proof of a London address), the student's community police station, or any OPP detachment.

Students are advised to keep a copy of their VSS as many of our placement partners request proof that this requirement has been met. Students must also be prepared to complete the police check process more frequently if asked by an agency.

Students are not required to share their VSS information with School of Nursing staff/faculty, however they are required to disclose results to our practice partners if an occurance exists. Students are advised that a criminal record, may negatively affect their ability to complete the BScN program and eligibility to register with the College of Nurses of Ontario or an equivalent regulatory body.

Faculty of Health Sciences VSS Policy

Students should familiarize themselves with the requirements and process, including fees, identification to bring, and processing times in order to meet this requirement in an expedient manner. Fees are the responsibility of the student and processing times vary depending on the volume of requests. Processing time for police checks varies, sometimes take several weeks. Students are strongly encouraged to start the application process well in advance. It is the responsibility of the student to ensure each check includes a Vulnerable Sector Check.

Students who require a School of Nursing VSS Authorization Letter or London Police, Toronto Police, or OPP record check form can download these documents from Owl (under Resources > Forms & Documents), or may contact the Placement Coordinator, Requirements & Information if originals are needed.

Practice Placements and HSPnet:

The Health Sciences Placement Network (HSPnet) is a database used by the Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing and many of our practice partners to manage placements for our students. During their first year, students receive the document Identified Purposes and Handling of Personal Information in HSPnet, and then sign and return the Consent Form for Use and Disclosure of Personal Information to the School of Nursing. The Identified Purposes document is available in OWL (in the Placement Information site).

Confidentiality Agreements:

As a nursing student you have access to healthcare information and are bound by legislation to keep the information that you access confidential. In order to be able to access this privileged information, students must, in a classroom setting, review the components of privacy and confidentiality, write a quiz demonstrating knowledge acquisition, and sign a the School of Nursing Privacy & Confidentiality Agreement. This agreement will be housed in each student’s file for the duration of their time within the Nursing program.

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