NANAIMO, B.C. — A group of nurses who only a few months ago lived thousands of kilometres apart in the United States are now working side-by-side on Vancouver Island after leaving their lives south of the border behind.
The four nurses who spoke to CTV News moved from Arizona, Michigan and California, reaching what they describe as breaking points with the political and social climate in the United States.
So, they packed up their belongings, or sold them off, and relocated to Nanaimo, B.C., where they are now caring for patients in a region facing a significant shortage of health-care workers.
“I never imagined that I would ever leave because things are exponentially terrible in the U.S.,” said Kelli, who declined to give her last name, and made the move from Phoenix, Ariz. She points specifically to immigration enforcement tactics she sees “escalating.”
Others say their decision to relocate to Canada was shaped by opposition to the Trump administration, as well as the state of American health care.
“If you’re a nurse, you can’t support what’s going on down there,” said Brandy Frye, who moved in September from southern California with her 13-year-old son. “We all take an oath to care for the poor and vulnerable, and that’s not what’s happening.”
Henrietta, whose family moved to the U.S. from West Africa when she was a teen, said experiences with racism also played a role in her decision.
“In the U.S., it’s almost like you can’t miss it,” she said. She describes a tense and racially charged environment in her Detroit-area neighbourhood that contributed to her move. “My partner and I will go for walks in the neighborhood that I’ve been living in, and they will just stare. There was one couple walking, they saw us, and then just moved across the street to keep walking. [My partner] was like, this is not where I want to raise my kids.”
After relocating to Vancouver Island, some with partners, children and pets, others alone, the nurses say they’ve been struck by the community’s welcome. Henrietta even received an unexpected ovation at the grocery store.
“Somebody’s like, ‘Where did you come from?’” She recalls when she was struggling in line to figure out which Canadian bills she was holding. When she indicated she was from the U.S., a shopper asked if she was one of the region’s new nurses. “Then a bunch of people started clapping,” she said with a laugh.
Susan Fleischman, a Canadian permanent resident who lived in the United States for most of her life, said Vancouver Island’s spectacular setting has been another draw.
“It’s beautiful here. There are so many beautiful hikes and waterfalls,” she said.
Recruitment efforts
The positive experiences of the four women come as British Columbia continues to face a shortage of nurses. The provincial government has been actively recruiting health-care workers internationally, including through targeted advertising campaigns in the United States. But three of the four nurses who spoke to CTV News now working in Nanaimo say their move was sparked by a grassroots effort they discovered on social media.
That effort was launched by Nanaimo resident Tod Maffin, a marketer and part-time influencer who, on a lark, initially invited Americans to visit the city during the tariff dispute between the two countries last spring. When hundreds of people showed up, including some health-care workers kicking the tires on a new place to live, the initiative took on a new focus.
“My wife and I kind of repositioned the whole thing as a health-care recruitment project,” Maffin said. “I think we’re past 40 nurses and doctors now that have passed through that program that are moving here or have already moved.”
The social-media-driven campaign called the Canadian Healthcare Infusion has since expanded to communities across Canada.
“There are now 35 chapters across this country that are doing essentially what we did,” said Maffin. They’re all volunteer run, they’re all community led, they’re all autonomous, and they are recruiting health-care professionals from all over the world, but mostly the U.S.”
For the American nurses now settling into life on Vancouver Island, the move already feels permanent.
“I’m already working on permanent residency,” said Kelli.
Brandy Frye put it more simply. “I belong to you guys now.”
