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International Recruitment 2015

Published: 22/06/2015
Publication code: 004000

Nurses from overseas have always made a valuable contribution to the NHS and care settings in the UK. We also have a history of relying on the migration of nurses from overseas to compensate for the shortfall of nurses at home.

For the first time since the early 2000s it is becoming clear that there is a critical shortage of registered nurses in the UK. But both the UK and global nursing labour markets are changing and our increasing over-reliance on alternative sources is not sustainable. 

Health care providers across the UK are continually sounding the alarm over their ability to recruit permanent nurses. As efforts are made to increase productivity in the NHS and bring down the agency bill over the next year, Trusts will be even more reliant on expensive recruitment drives both in and outside of Europe to recruit staff. 

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Published by the Royal College of Nursing, 20 Cavendish Square, London, W1G 0RN.

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