Wednesday 18 May 2005: Great Britain: Biggest ever survey of overseas nurses working in London highlights that many are thinking of leaving the UK:"The NHS in London could face a staffing crisis in the future with more than four out of every 10 overseas nurses working in the capital admitting they are considering leaving the health service to take up posts in other countries. That is the key finding from the biggest ever survey of internationally recruited nurses working in the capital, which has been published today by the King's Fund and the Royal College of Nursing. A major concern of the survey is that two thirds of Filipino nurses working in London – one of the largest overseas nursing staff groups - are considering leaving the UK to work in the US."
King's Fund
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http://www.kingsfund.org.uk/news/news.cfm?contentID=299
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Andrew Lopez, RN
http://www.nursinga2z.com
As far as nursing is concerned its the same circus but a different tent. Many nurses not just foreign nurses find the pay low and the working conditions difficult. Foreign nurses who plan to come to the US must pass the nursing boards as well as some other tests in order to qualify for a license in this country. Both the US and the UK would benefit from making education more attractive, affordable and available for its citizens so they wont have to rely on recruiting nurses from overseas.
I agree, it would be better in the long run to improve working conditions so that "home grown" nurses would stay put. However, my opinion is that it is much cheaper to keep conditions poor (while maximizing profit) and import nurses willing to work under those conditions for however short a time.
As long as hospitals/healthcare has the bottom line as the chief priority, I don't see working conditions, or dependence on foreign nurses improving for quite some time.
Andrew Lopez, RN
http://www.nursinga2z.com
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