STRUGGLING hospitals are hoping changes to the English testing system which determines whether or not foreign nurses can be employed will help ease staffing woes.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) have announced that nurses will now be able to demonstrate their proficiency through a simpler, more specific test designed for workers in the healthcare sector.
The acceptance of the Occupational English Test (OET) has pleased bosses at Furness General Hospital who have previously expressed concerns over the current method of testing, the International English Language Testing System (IELTS.)
David Wilkinson, director of workforce and organisational development, at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) said: "UHMBT welcome the changes announced earlier this week by the Nursing and Midwifery Council as it currently takes 12-15 months to get a new overseas recruit onto our wards.
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"This is mainly down to the relevant checks and tests that they have to pass before they are allowed to work in this country, such as the important International English Language Test.
“We hope that these changes will mean that we can welcome our new international recruits sooner whilst maintaining the quality of nurses and midwives on our wards."
The move should also please Jackie Daniel, chief executive of the trust in charge of the Barrow hospital.
She has been an outspoken critic of IELTS and told The Mail back in July that she believed 40 qualified nurses could have been working on wards across the trust by Christmas if the NMC had relaxed the pass grade by just half a point.
IELTS exams are graded from zero to nine, and all nurses wishing to work in the NHS from outside the UK must score an average of seven, sitting tests in reading, writing, speaking and listening.
Controversy surrounding the tests was not limited to Cumbria, with many other hospital trusts around the country expressing frustration at how the strain it was putting on recruitment drives.
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Mr Wilkinson added: "Over the last few years, we have been working hard to increase the number of staff we have across the Trust.
"This recruitment drive includes continuing to recruit from within the UK and overseas.
"In September 2017 we welcomed 44 newly-qualified nurses and five newly-qualified midwives."
The trust are keen to continue recruiting professionals to help keep staffing levels high within their hospitals and it is hoped the new testing system will do just that.
Countries including Australia, New Zealand and Singapore currently accept the test as a measure of English proficiency.
The regulator has also announced that nurses and midwives who qualified outside of Europe will also be able to demonstrate their language skills if they have a recent qualification taught and examined in English.
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They could also qualify if they have registered and practised for a minimum of one year in a country where English is the first and native language, and a successful pass in an English language test was required for registration.
NMC chief executive and registrar Jackie Smith said: "Nurses and midwives trained outside the UK make up around 15 per cent of our register.
"They are vital to the delivery of health and care services across the UK.
"By accepting alternative forms of evidence we are increasing the options available for nurses and midwives to demonstrate they have the necessary command of English to practise safely and effectively, without compromising patient safety."
A spokesman for the Royal College of Nursing said: "The NHS is struggling to recruit overseas nurses but we would firmly oppose any change just to plug workforce gaps. It must be robust and command the confidence of the public.
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"This move maintains high standards by using a comparable test but the NMC must review the decision every two years. Performance data must be collected and released too, including for the current test."
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