Dear Sophie,
I am extremely satisfied with your service. I am very grateful for the care and patience you have extended for us. As a family we highly appreciate your time and thoughtful efforts. Starting from the encouraging emails to the phone calls, you have given us hope of living and working in Australia. Your reassurance, patience, care and effort show your good nature which makes interacting with you a very pleasant experience. I highly recommend Sophie and the vital international group to anyone who wishes to work in Australia as a nurse. Interactions with the vital international group and Sophie Pelman are beyond excellent. For all the nurses who wish to get a quick response and a good experience, you should try the vital international group. The moment I got to Australia I felt at home because Sophie was here and she helped us get settled. We will remember you in our prayers.

Gratefully
Mariamma Chandy

When myself and my husband, Rich, decided to move to Australia with our daughter, Molly, we contacted Joey at Vital and she was very helpful and kept us well informed and supported us through the process.

We finally arrived in Melbourne in February 2008. Went to the office and met all the girls there. It was great to be able to put faces to the people we'd spoken to so much over the previous few months. Joey has helped with allsorts of different issues since moving here and has made the transition easy for us. I started working at the Royal Melbourne hospital in an oncology/haematology unit. It's very different to working in the NHS, it's a lot more relaxed and with a much lighter workload and when you finish work the sun's shining! Melbourne is a beautiful city and it'd take years to see the whole place. Every time we come to the city we come across a new building or landmark. It's very clean and welcoming. The public transport is great and it's only $6.50 for the day and you can use it as much as you like.

We'd like to say thanks to all the girls at Vital international for helping us move to Melbourne, they've all been very polite, supportive and welcoming. I'd recommend them as the agency to go with to make this move. From Becky Mulvana, RN

PS. The drinks evening when you arrive is good fun and a great opportunity to meet others in the same situation.

Christian Trapp, RN

When I checked out some agencies in Australia, Sophie Pelman from Vital International Recruitment responded immediately. The positive and competent answers to all my questions even before I decided to go with the Vital International Recruitment convinced me to choose this agency. I never regretted this decision. Sophie and her colleagues helped immensely through the whole 9 month lasting process, from the registration with the Nurses Board of Victoria to the contact with the employer and the issues of the immigration. She was always a step ahead of the process and delivered additional important information and hints I never thought about in the first place. I always found her patient and competent. The partners in the agency were also great! It was very great to have this support from somebody who is local in Australia.

Even now in the start stage here in Australia, Sophie is always available to answer questions and giving support e.g. free internet access for finding a place to live.

I can even say, I and my wife think of Sophie more as a friend not only as a great job agent. Thank you and your team at Vital International Recruitment.

My name is Mayra; I was working as a nurse in Ireland when I thought about moving to Australia. I became pregnant so I thought it would be complicated that time. However, I found Ms. Joey Cooney (Vital International Recruitment) who immediately replied on my queries. She said she was going to assist me, the Australian way.

I went home to Philippines to spend my maternity leave and sometime to start my application for nursing in Australia. I had my telephone job interview before I give birth and months later I got our visa approved through on line application. It was not too easy but I got there. I felt Joey was with me all throughout the whole process, assisting me with everything along the way and staying in touch constantly.

So I am now here in Melbourne! It is a lovely place; we are still in the period of settling in, but I have met many people from different countries who are happy and have settled well. Thank you. Mayra Rodriguez, RN

Dora, David and Stan Pimlott

Hello everybody! I'm Dora a theatre nurse from Manchester UK, my family moved to Brisbane Australia recently for a better quality of life. How was it? Absolutely wonderful!

I have submitted my CV to various agencies, but somehow Vital international felt right. Indeed in a matter of weeks they have found me a good job. Now I am employed by Mater Hospital one of the biggest hospital in Brisbane. Guys in Vital you're not only looking forward to a great opportunity but most of all you will find a good friend in their wonderful staff (Thanks to you Sophie). Now little Stanley is not only enjoying the lovely weather and gorgeous city beach but the beautiful beach babes as well.

I am highly recommending Vital International to all nurses out there; in here you are in good hands from start to finish. Well done to all staff of Vital!

Thank you all so much! Dora, Dave and Stan

Nursing in Australia has been great. The transition between nursing in Canada to Australia has been very easy and I soon felt comfortable and confident. In addition, Vital International has always been supportive. They have consistently been there to help me with anything whether it is questions regarding work, housing, or just where to have fun!!! It's been a blast!

Emma Hardwick, RN 

Dear Sophie

I am approaching the end of my three month probation period and I feel comfortable that there should not be any problems. We are in the process of buying a house and believe that we, as a family, can have a good and safe future in Australia. When I contacted you, I was very concerned about finding work in Australia. We had an offer on our house in South Africa and the recruitment company that I was dealing with did not manage to arrange even one interview for me in two and a half months (by then I had successfully completed my registration with the Queensland Nursing Council). On the 23rd of July 2007 I contacted your agency and you managed to get me an official job offer by the 21st of August 2007. Your assistance with the rest of the process was outstanding and easy to follow. You were always there to answer all our questions accurately and efficiently. I would like to thank you again on behalf of my family and me; for all that you have done for us. With your exceptional service and follow up, you have certainly made us feel comfortable in dealing with your agency throughout the process. We would without hesitation recommend you personally to anyone trying to apply for work in Australia for the professionalism and efficiency you have showed us. We wish you all the best and hope to meet someday soon to thank you personally and show you all our gratitude.

Best Regards, Igna, Jean Claude and Anton BouJaoude

Sam Evans, RN/RMN

First of all I'd like to say a big thank you to all the staff at Vital for providing such an excellent service, and above all I would like to thank Sophie for guiding me through the whole process of moving from the U.K to Australia. I decided back in June 2007 to take a career break from my post as a Mental Health Practitioner in Liverpool/ England and move to Brisbane for 18 months. I had already moved from Bryncir Wales!!! to Liverpool when I was 19 so moving away from home wasn't new. I was aware that such a big move would be difficult to arrange however Sophie ensured that this process was made as easy as possible and supported me throughout. There were several things that needed to be completed such as application for registration with the nursing board here, police checks, visa application (this took ages to come thorough although 1 phone call from Sophie to my visa case manager and I was here!!) and most importantly job interviews!!! Within a matter of weeks I had some lined up. I decided in the end to accept a post working as a clinical nurse for the Homeless Health Outreach Team.

Vital arranged somewhere for me to stay whilst I settled into life here, as I have only been here a couple of weeks I am still at that address and its absolutely lovely, Sophie also arranged for the landlady to pick me up from the airport and after the stress of such a long flight (which I never thought I'd have survived as I hate flying!!) this was great!! Having been in Brisbane for a few days Sophie arranged for me to meet up with Hannah Gregory (who is also on here) this was really good as when you are such a long way away from the people you love the most its good to know that there are others in the same position and you can support each other. It didn't take me long either to figure out the hotspots of Brisbane, lets face it you can't come to Australia just to work!!!!!!

I have been working now for 2 weeks and so far I love it. The lifestyle here is great; everyone is so friendly and up for a good time!! Sophie if you are ever in Brisbane it’s my shout!!! Sam Evans

Sanja and the staff at vital made the move to Australia so easy for my partner and I. They worked hard to find me an employment position that matched both my experience and our lifestyle. Sanja’s work was highly professional; her ability to communicate and update me at every step of the process was amazing. She was able to share valuable feedback from the experiences of other healthcare workers she had found employment for, to assist me in my decision making.

Her willingness to make sure we were to enjoy the experience was enhanced by her friendly nature. She would call me before my interviews and wish me luck, it was the small things that made it personal for me. I thank Sanja for all her hard work and for making my big move to Australia pay off- we love it!!!