• Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
24/7 Health News
No Result
View All Result
Home Article

The NHS relies on nurses from poorer countries to fill jobs – here’s how to tackle this problem

July 14, 2023
in Article
The NHS relies on nurses from poorer countries to fill jobs – here’s how to tackle this problem

DC Studio/Shutterstock

Recent media reports have highlighted the issue of nurses coming to the UK to work for the NHS from poorer countries with their own nursing shortfalls. This is a problem because when nurses leave countries that already have workforce shortages, healthcare in those countries inevitably suffers.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified more than 50 countries where exporting nurses is putting their healthcare systems at risk. The WHO advises that in these countries, international recruitment should only take place if very carefully managed.

While we would not criticise any person who is looking for a better life for themselves and their family, nurses are often trained at taxpayers’ expense to meet the pressing healthcare needs in their own countries.

So is there a better way?

Not a new trend

It’s important to see this phenomenon in its historical context. Britain has been recruiting nurses from its former colonies since the 1940s. Some of the original Windrush passengers 75 years ago were nurses and midwives from Jamaica who had been invited to work in the newly-created NHS to meet workforce needs.

According to the Nursing and Midwifery Council, the countries that the UK recruits the most nurses from post-Brexit are India, the Philippines, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Kenya and Nepal.

Some 91% of the overseas nurses registered to practice in the UK in 2021-2022 came from these seven countries. Four of these countries (Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Ghana and Nepal) are on the WHO’s safeguarding list.

Countries such as the Philippines and India – where the majority of internationally trained nurses in the UK come from – have a “surplus” of nurses, insofar as they train more nurses than they can employ with the intention that those nurses will work elsewhere. The Philippines in particular is economically dependent on the remittance of expatriate citizens, including nurses.

Nonetheless, both the Philippines and especially India have very low levels of nurses per capita, according to data from the World Bank. This is even more of an issue in rural areas. Given this, and the underdeveloped state of their healthcare systems, recruiting nurses even from these countries is not a straightforward ethical proposition.




Read more:
‘It’s like being in a warzone’ – A&E nurses open up about the emotional cost of working on the NHS frontline


This is not a uniquely British situation. Of the OECD countries, the UK is similar to New Zealand, Switzerland and Australia where at least 20% of the nursing workforce is trained elsewhere.

Even Japan, a country that has traditionally been wary of immigration, is now recruiting nurses from Indonesia and the Philippines. This means that the UK is in competition with other rich countries for nurses and other healthcare workers.

A male nurse of Indian appearance with a senior female patient.
Many nurses in the UK are originally from India.
The Imagineers/Shutterstock

What’s the solution?

The obvious long-term solution, featured in the recent NHS workforce plan, is to train more nurses in the UK. However, this is not as simple as funding additional places at university for students to study nursing. Student nurses need supervised practice as part of their education, and the NHS has a limited capacity to absorb students, especially given the pressure the system is under.

It takes at least three years to train a nurse, and longer before they can take on complex roles like advanced nurse practitioner. Around the world, there is also a shortage of nursing lecturers (notably in the US).

While there is not yet firm evidence of such a shortage in the UK, the nursing lecturer workforce, like the wider nursing workforce, is ageing, with many set to retire in the coming years.

In the short term, the policy intervention that will be most effective is for the NHS to retain more of the nurses that it already has. The easiest and quickest way of doing this would be to pay nurses more and give them better working conditions, including improved professional development and training.

Our own research supports this. We ran a development programme for late-career nurses and the participants talked about “feeling energised” by the programme.




Read more:
NHS nurses: pressures taking toll on compassion and kindness, our new study shows


The UK government has reached agreements with Nepal and India that aim to allow the UK to recruit healthcare workers from these countries but without damaging their healthcare systems. They are currently frameworks for the development of more detailed policy but do not contain specific targets for recruitment numbers.

Given global economic inequalities, and ageing populations in the world’s richer countries, some movement of nurses from poorer countries to richer countries is inevitable, at least in the short term.

But there are measures that richer countries can take to manage this process ethically, not least a strong commitment to the existing nursing workforce in terms of pay, working conditions and development.

The Conversation

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

ShareTweetSharePin
Next Post

Stem cell therapies: why they're expensive, unproven and often dangerous

Most Read

What causes stuttering? A speech pathology researcher explains the science and the misconceptions around this speech disorder

What causes stuttering? A speech pathology researcher explains the science and the misconceptions around this speech disorder

December 15, 2022
morning back pain

Morning Again Ache Trigger Is Not the Mattress

October 11, 2021

4 steps to building a healthier relationship with your phone

January 28, 2025

Why Circadian Rhythms Matter for Your Health

July 30, 2024
lower back pain relief exercises

5 decrease again ache aid workouts

October 11, 2021
3 years after legalization, we have shockingly little information about how it changed cannabis use and health harms

3 years after legalization, we have shockingly little information about how it changed cannabis use and health harms

October 15, 2021
bleeding in gum

When The Bleeding in gum Is Severe ?

October 11, 2021
Good Night Sleep

6 Causes of Good Evening Sleep

October 11, 2021
Nasal vaccines promise to stop the COVID-19 virus before it gets to the lungs – an immunologist explains how they work

Nasal vaccines promise to stop the COVID-19 virus before it gets to the lungs – an immunologist explains how they work

December 14, 2022
Biden is getting prostate cancer treatment, but that’s not the best choice for all men − a cancer researcher describes how she helped her father decide

Biden is getting prostate cancer treatment, but that’s not the best choice for all men − a cancer researcher describes how she helped her father decide

May 20, 2025

COVID vaccines: how one can pace up rollout in poorer international locations

October 5, 2021
Ten small changes you can make today to prevent weight gain

Ten small changes you can make today to prevent weight gain

October 12, 2021
Kick up your heels – ballroom dancing offers benefits to the aging brain and could help stave off dementia

Kick up your heels – ballroom dancing offers benefits to the aging brain and could help stave off dementia

January 3, 2023
Support and collaboration with health-care providers can help people make health decisions

Support and collaboration with health-care providers can help people make health decisions

December 16, 2021

Maximize Your Performance – Sync with Your Circadian Rhythms

August 9, 2024
woman covered with white blanket

Exploring the Impact of Sleep Patterns on Mental Health

August 4, 2024
Five ways to avoid pain and injury when starting a new exercise regime

Five ways to avoid pain and injury when starting a new exercise regime

December 30, 2022

This Simple Hygiene Habit Could Cut Your Risk of Stroke, New Research Reveals

February 1, 2025
Greece to make COVID vaccines mandatory for over-60s, but do vaccine mandates work?

Greece to make COVID vaccines mandatory for over-60s, but do vaccine mandates work?

December 1, 2021

Multiple sclerosis: the link with earlier infection just got stronger – new study

October 12, 2021
GPs don’t give useful weight-loss advice – new study

GPs don’t give useful weight-loss advice – new study

December 16, 2022
News of war can impact your mental health — here’s how to cope

Binge-eating disorder is more common than many realise, yet it’s rarely discussed – here’s what you need to know

December 2, 2022
Nurses’ attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination for their children are highly influenced by partisanship, a new study finds

Nurses’ attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination for their children are highly influenced by partisanship, a new study finds

December 2, 2022
FDA limits access to COVID-19 vaccine to older adults and other high-risk groups – a public health expert explains the new rules

FDA limits access to COVID-19 vaccine to older adults and other high-risk groups – a public health expert explains the new rules

May 21, 2025
As viral infections skyrocket, masks are still a tried-and-true way to help keep yourself and others safe

As viral infections skyrocket, masks are still a tried-and-true way to help keep yourself and others safe

December 14, 2022

🧬 How Your DNA Affects Exercise: The Science of Personalized Fitness

May 21, 2025
How regulatory agencies, not the courts, are imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates

How regulatory agencies, not the courts, are imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates

October 24, 2021
Four ways to avoid gaining weight over the festive period – but also why you shouldn’t fret about it too much

Four ways to avoid gaining weight over the festive period – but also why you shouldn’t fret about it too much

December 22, 2022
Nutrition advice is rife with misinformation − a medical education specialist explains how to tell valid health information from pseudoscience

Nutrition advice is rife with misinformation − a medical education specialist explains how to tell valid health information from pseudoscience

January 28, 2025
How hot is too hot for the human body? Our lab found heat + humidity gets dangerous faster than many people realize

How hot is too hot for the human body? Our lab found heat + humidity gets dangerous faster than many people realize

July 6, 2022
  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer

© 2020 DAILY HEALTH NEWS

  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice

© 2020 DAILY HEALTH NEWS