New plans to recruit foreign workers in UK care homes are being considered this winter amid fears of staff shortages.
A Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson said:
"As part of this, we will work with industry and recruitment experts to explore ways to more effectively recruit staff from overseas into adult social care."
Health Secretary Steve Barclay sends NHS managers to countries such as India and the Philippines to recruit thousands abroad I hope to nurse, The Times reported.
Barclay is also trying to make it easier for regulators to check international qualifications so staff can start working more quickly, the paper added.
However, just two weeks after concerns about NHS staffing were expressed in the UK, a workforce analysis showed that health services may be overly dependent on recruits from abroad.
According to a BBC analysis of 5 August, the proportion of medical staff recruited from abroad will almost double between 2014 and 2021, according to figures from NHS Digital.
Steve Berkley recruited nurses from countries such as India and the Philippines to support the sector (James Manning/PA)
( (PA Wire)
Danny Mortimer, NHS Chief Executive Employersat the time had He called on the government to take "urgent action".
He said: We appreciate the contributions of our international staff to our team and the care they provide to our patients.
“International recruitment should be viewed as part of multiple approaches to workforce planning, and the government's Code of Conduct on International Recruitment encourages employers to adopt ethical recruitment practices.
“Although there is also a focus on expanding and retaining the domestic workforce, the NHS has 105,000 vacancies and social care cannot get away from the fact that there are 165,000 vacancies, we need urgent action and the new Prime Minister has committed ample costs and resources to addressing the chronic shortage of workers in the long term. We must commit to making our staffing plans public.”
Dr. Kitty Mohan, chairman of the International Committee of the British Medical Association, also agreed with the call, stating that services would be “adequate.” We don't have enough staff," he said.
"The simple fact is that there are not enough doctors, nurses and other medical staff to meet the growing and increasingly complex medical needs of the population," Dr. Mohan said this month.
"We are asking the government and NHS England to publish a long-term workforce strategy as soon as possible," she added.
