UK's National Health Service Will Hire More Than 100 Indian Healthcare Professionals

The National Health Service (NHS) Trust, which oversees the York and Scarborough Hospitals in the UK, is planning to hire more than 100 experts from India in an attempt to address the shortfall of healthcare staff.

The Scarborough News reports that during a recruitment trip to Kerala, the York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has extended offers to 107 medical personnel, including 97 registered nurses and 10 allied health professionals.

Members of the trust's board of directors were informed that "The Trust has started the process to bid for NHS England funding to support international nursing recruitment between April - November 2023 and has indicated a target of 90 international nurses which could generate 450,000 pounds in funding,"

The Trust announced that "work is underway to process applications and support candidates with their English to enable cohorts to be drafted so we can plan commencement dates across 2023/24".

According to a news report, in January of this year, the trust, which manages York and Scarborough hospitals, had an 11.5 percent vacancy rate for healthcare support personnel in adult inpatient areas and a 14.5 percent vacancy rate for registered nurses in adult inpatient areas.

As international nurses joined the trust, the vacancy rate in adult inpatient wards reduced to 7.6%, the board was informed.

She said there was "immense work ongoing around retention" and added that the trust was struggling with staff who were leaving "very quickly",   head nurse Heather McNair said at a previous board meeting.

The number of vacancies for healthcare assistants is still high, according to McNair.

The first nationwide strike by nurses in the 106-year history of the union occurred on December 15, 2022, in response to growing costs and demands for salary increases.

At 76 hospitals and health facilities, an estimated 100,000 nurses went on strike,  canceling an estimated 70,000 appointments.

The largest nursing union in Britain issued a warning last month about an "exodus" of young workers from the profession.

According to data from the Royal College of Nursing, about 43,000 nurses in the UK who were in their first five years of practice have left their jobs. This number is almost equal to the record 47,000 nursing positions that are currently vacant in NHS England, according to a news agency.