HAAD exam for Registered Nurses - Procedure

Abu Dhabi, the capital of U.A.E offers number of job opportunities for medical and paramedicals. If you wish to be a part of Health Authority of Abu Dhabi, you should obtain a license, HAAD. The license is usually given after the successful completion of an exam in your area of specialization, some exemptions are there and the criteria is given at the end of this article.

Qualifications criteria for HAAD in Nursing

These are the modified qualifications for Registered Nurses based on the latest ( PQR) Professional     Qualification Requirements.

• Bachelor degree or diploma in nursing (3 years) or Associate Degree in nursing with evidence of passing the National exam (eg.NCLEX-RN).
• Valid National Professional License.
• Valid Basic Life Support certification.
• ACLS / PALS relevant to area of specialty.
• 2 years clinical experience post qualification in appropriate setting.

Documents Required to Apply for HAAD

Before you start application process for HAAD, make sure that you have scanned copy of all the required documents to upload for the data flow. The required documents for the application of registered nurse at HAAD are as follows:

• Recent passport size photograph with white background
• Valid Passport copy
• High school Certificate
• Degree or Diploma Certificate
• Experience certificates , must contain the job title and duration and to be signed by the human resources or Medical/Hospital director
• Home country license or license from the country where the relevant qualification was obtained
• Registration(s) or License(s) from each country where applicant have been employed.
• Certificate(s) of Good Standing From the regulatory authority issuing the licenses (registrations) for experiences
• Transcript
• United Arab Emirates Identification Card if available
• Family Book (UAE nationals )
• Sponsoring Facility Declaration form (applicable if you have sponsor, if none then leave this part blank)
• Letter of authorization
• CID/Security form (English pages only)

Procedure to apply for HAAD exam

If you are qualified for HAAD examination, then you may proceed with the Data flow process for credential verification. Data flow is an agency who will verify the required documents. If applicants are eligible after verification of documents, then they can proceed with the HAAD examination process.

steps:

1. Sign-up to the official Data flow website.

https://bpmweb.haad.ae/UserManagement/Login.aspx , click on new user to sign up for the first time.

2. Fill-up the application with your details relevant to your desired position.

Select none if you don’t have a sponsor or an employer and you can download and upload a blank document of the same if you don’t have a sponsor. Choose nursing and midwifery from the drop down-button and select registered nurse and your area of specialty.

3. Upload scanned documents to the place provided and then submit.

Fill in the necessary information required in each box. If you have any relatives in UAE then you can give their contact number for communication, else you can fill those place with 00000. If you already passed HAAD and will undergo data flow, upload your HAAD exam result in here.

4. Check your email to obtain your Data flow number.

You will receive a confirmation email from Data flow with your respective Data flow number after submission of the required documents.

5. Payment

Applicants in UAE can pay at the Data flow counters located at HAAD facilities while those outside of U.A.E can pay by using their credit cards, preferably with a U.A.E bank card.

6. Follow up

You can follow-up your application by sending email to haadsupport@dataflowgroup.com. On completion of verification, data flow will send you an email for your HAAD web login (pre-licensing). Wait for at least 30 to 60 days for the verification process (some can take up to 90 days). If you are eligible, you can book for HAAD examination.

7. Booking for Examination

• Go to this link 
• Log in and click on “E-Licensing” and select “Examination”.
• Click on “Exam Scheduling”.
• Enter your application number and click Search. Your application number will be emailed to you after the verification process.
• Select your desired date, time and testing center.
• Click “BOOK” button. Pay the examination fee using your credit card 
• Print your Exam Ticket. This will be presented in the test center.

Exam Format for HAAD

It is a CBT ( computer based test) for 3 hours. There are 150 multiple choice questions to be answered and the result of the examination will be immediately available once you finish the exam as it is in Pometric. You will get a "pass or fail" result but not your score.

How to Retake HAAD exam 

Candidates are given three attempts (in three separate applications) to pass the HAAD examination. If the candidate failed all the three attempts, he or she will have to wait for 1 year from the last one to retake the exam.

Application Fee for HAAD

Verification fee is 950AED. Documents verified under this fee includes:

• One educational qualification
• One License  issued by the Regulatory Body  of specific country of last experience
• Last 3 years work experience, limited to a maximum of 3 employers
• Certificate of Good Standing, from the country of last experience or from the last employer

For any additional documents to be verified, you must pay extra fee.

Licence issuance fee for Nurse is AED. 300

Exemption Criteria for HAAD registered Nurse

Applicants who are licensed within the below shown countries will be exempted from the Registered Nurse or Registered Midwife components of the HAAD competency based assessment (Examination)

• Australia
• Canada
• Ireland
• New Zealand
• South Africa
• United Kingdom
• USA

Another exemption is for DHA licensed candidates, they can transfer their DHA license in to HAAD.

Nursing Specialities in Demand

Highest paying Nursing jobs

Working in certain areas of nursing can be exciting and challenging. Nurses in certain specialties have the opportunity to use advanced technology, perform various procedures and help patients through a difficult situation.Though it is a challenging area, experience in these specialties will lead to highest paying nursing jobs. Certain specialties need additional qualification where as some just need a RN license. Listed few specialties that can be enjoyed as a RN.

Emergency Room Nursing

Long back, when I was a student nurse I had my clinical in ER. The very first day I wanted to ran off from the department due to fear. Though I was under the supervision of excellent registered nurses, I was not ready to handle a crisis situation. In ER each moment you can expect some one who is fighting for his/ her life, it is one of the most challenging area in nursing. 

Working in ER needs good level of knowledge, skill, decision making, and critical thinking ability. In ER you will get a chance to deal with all kinds of medical and surgical problems, both acute and chronic. Some can wait for hours but some needs immediate attention.

To work in ER you should have good knowledge on both the medical and remedial aspect of health care. You must be good at basic and advanced life support. Ability to render prompt nursing care in emergency conditions like cardiac arrest, stroke, sepsis and trauma can save the life of your victims. ER nurses should have excellent assessment and time management skills. They should also be able to multitask and remain calm in a crisis.

Critical Care Nursing

At the initial point of my Student life, I was scared to enter into an ICU. But few days after my clinical posting I have developed a passion toward critical care department. Treating or caring for the critically ill will bring happiness and inner satisfaction. Since patients in critical care areas are usually very sick, unhappy situations can occur anytime. Medical professionals should have good personal coping skills to deal with tragic situations on a regular basis.

Critical care areas include the intensive care units that are adult, pediatric and neonatal. It include both medical and surgical care units and areas like burn unit. Regardless of the area you work in, critical care nursing involves caring for patients who are seriously ill.

As a critical care nurse, you may be caring for patients who require extensive medical support. Some patients will be on a mechanical ventilator, dialysis machine and have multiple intravenous lines. A nurse working in critical care should be someone who learns quickly and is a good problem solver. Nurses interested in pursuing critical care nursing should get at least a year experience in that area. Earning additional certifications, such as BLS and ACLS, will also make you more marketable. Pediatric and Neonatal ICU nurses also are in high demand and paid better compared to other areas. You should get a PALS or NRP training to work in these areas. 

Operation Room Nursing

Working in the operating room sounds like something you would enjoy, you should be a team players and be able to move from one task to the next quickly. Some hospitals have surgical nursing training programs periodically for staff who are interested in transitioning into this specialty. In OR also you can choose your own specialty like neuro surgery, transplant, general surgery etc. based on your interest.

Operating room (OR) nursing jobs involve the care for patients before, during and after surgery. Also known as peri-operative nursing. Actually they have to perform dual role as a scrub nurse and a circulating nurse.

A scrub nurse may prepare the operating room including laying out and organizing instruments. They also assess the patient once they arrive in the operating room prior to the start of the surgical procedure. They may help prepare the patient including attaching equipment and monitors. During the procedure, scrub nurses may pass instruments to the surgeon and monitor the patient during the procedure. Circulating nurses may ensure all patient paperwork is completed, such as consent forms. Circulating nurses may also replenish surgical supplies as needed during the procedure. After the procedure, they may verify instrument count and complete charting. Skilled OR nurses have better salary than a RN who is working in medical or surgical wards and out patient department

Dialysis Nursing

The number of dialysis centers has grown by 4 percent annually over the past decade. Renal failure is an unfortunately common mishap that strikes people as they grow old. The condition occurs when both kidneys become unable to filter waste products from the blood. It can be either acute or chronic. In both cases renal dialysis is a treatment that helps to clear waste products and excess water from the body.

Working in dialysis unit may be difficult during the initial few days because it needs a thorough knowledge on the basic biochemistry and the whole process related to dialysis. You must be new to the machine and it takes time to understand the whole process included in dialysis. Complications associated with dialysis can be life threatening unless corrected immediately. Once you become expert, you have a very good future in your career as it is one of the highly paid area in nursing.

Labor and delivery Nursing

Labor and delivery nurses are registered nurses who care for women during pregnancy, delivery and even after delivery for a period of time. They can work in clinics, hospitals and maternity centers. Some countries allow Midwives to conduct normal delivery if you have a Midwifery licence.

There is a huge demand for experienced L&D staff through out the world. If you compare payment, it is much higher than many other clinical areas. You need to prove your skill and decision making capacity to become a successful L&D nurse

Pros and Cones

Working in this critical areas of nursing sounds exciting, but it can also be stressful. You will have plenty of job opportunities and the salary is much better compared to non critical areas. Working in these areas will help to grow in your career by improving the knowledge and skill. It demands lot of hard work and critical thinking ability.You needs to be confident and calm while you work in this areas .Nurses who work in these specialties often have to face many challenging situation in a day. They need multi tasking capacity, could be exhausting and may lead to Physical and mental strain.

Nurses who work in critical care areas need to think quickly and move fast.You have to be good communicators, because you are the who is going to communicate with doctors, patients, family members and other allied health team members during high-stress situations.You will never know what will come up next. Your workload can increase quickly. Watching people suffer from severe injuries and witnessing some of them die is not easy. Nurses need to be able to cope well with the emotional aspects of working in critical care areas.

All these years I was working as a critical care nurse for Neonatal and pediatric population. I really enjoyed working in these areas. Though it is tiring and stressful it will give an amazing feeling, when some one come back to a life through our hands. Cheers to all the nurses.....