Requesting student placements

• Health sciences (clinical) placements

  Open health sciences (clinical) placements Close health sciences (clinical) placements

  Includes nursing, allied health, rehabilitation sciences, social work, and other non-medical clinical discipline placements for students who are currently enrolled in a post-secondary institution where the practicum is a requirement of graduation and the students are insured by the school for third party liability and personal injury insurance.
   

• Medical student placement

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  All medical student placements must be arranged through the University of British Columbia (UBC) Faculty of Medicine. VCH does not accept direct requests.

  • Undergraduate Medical Placements / Electives:
    Visit: mdprogram.med.ubc.ca
  • Postgraduate Medical Placements (Residency, etc.):
    Visit: postgrad.med.ubc.ca

  For shadowing or observational experiences involving physicians, please consult the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia (CPSBC).

• Job shadow/career observation

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  Vancouver Coastal Health does not offer any shadow or practicum placements to students on their own, including observations as prerequisites to school programs. 

  We only consider shadow experiences for qualified health-care professionals who are seeking professional development opportunities or employment.

  Individuals will be required to have immunizations up to date and a current criminal record check. Individuals may be responsible for having adequate insurance and completing the VCH Privacy and Confidentiality Undertaking for Student Placement is mandatory.

  Please email Placements@vch.ca for details. ‎

• Independent supervised practice experience

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  If you require a practicum placement at the health authority to renew your Nursing license and you are not enrolled in a post-secondary institution, please contact us at Placements@vch.ca. Please note that you will be required to complete all standard pre-requisites prior to starting a placement per our guidelines.

• Co-op student placements

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  VCH Student Practice only processes requests for health sciences-related student placements arranged through HSPnet. If you require a paid Co-op placement (reimbursed by either the health authority or your institution), please connect with your co-op coordinator who will advise you on how to apply for these opportunities. ‎

• Paid work opportunities for students

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  VCH Student Practice only processes requests for unpaid health sciences-related student placements arranged through HSPnet.

  • Employed Student Nurses: If you are a Nursing student interested in paid work opportunities, please refer to the Employed Student Nurse (ESN) Program page.
  • For other paid work opportunities, including Nursing Career Pathway and Health Career Access Program (HCAP), please refer to the VCH Student Careers website or contact VCH Recruitment directly.

• Volunteer opportunities

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  If you are interested in exploring careers in health care and gaining experience for future employment or educational plans, please refer to the VCH Volunteer Services page.

How to request a Health Sciences Placement

• Establish or renew an affiliation agreement (minimum 3 months before intended start date)

  Open establish or renew an affiliation agreement (minimum 3 months before intended start date) Close establish or renew an affiliation agreement (minimum 3 months before intended start date)

  A valid affiliation agreement must be in place before a placement request can be submitted or approved.

  Institutions seeking to establish or renew agreements should contact Placements@vch.ca at least three months before the intended start date.
   

• Submit a placement request through the Health Sciences Placement Network (HSPnet)

  Open submit a placement request through the health sciences placement network (hspnet) Close submit a placement request through the health sciences placement network (hspnet)

  All requests must be submitted through HSPnet. HSPnet is a centralized system streamlines applications and ensures consistency across VCH sites. 
  
  Students must use their school-issued email address. Do not contact VCH sites directly with requests.
  
  If your institution is outside of B.C. and you do not yet have access to HSPnet, before submitting a request, identify preferred VCH sites using the VCH Locations and Services Directory https://www.vch.ca/en/locations. 
  
  Once selected, the institution’s Placing Coordinator should contact VCH Placements at placements@vch.ca to request guest access to enter the request into HSPnet.

• Ensure students complete their pre-placement requirements

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  All students must complete the following before beginning their placement:

  • Student Practice Education Core Orientation (SPECO)
  • Any discipline-specific prerequisites

  It is the institution’s responsibility to ensure students meet these requirements. Incomplete prerequisites may result in delays or cancellations.

  Reference worksheets

  Optional step-by-step worksheets are available to support preparation. These are for reference only and do not need to be submitted:

  • VCH Student Placement Process Worksheet for Placing Coordinators
  • VCH Student Placement Process Worksheet for Students