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Thanks to our international nurse recruitment programme, Practice Plus Group is attracting nurses from around the world to help provide the very best quality care for our patients.

Nursing is the lifeblood of Practice Plus Group Hospitals and we are dedicated to ensuring we have experienced nurses who feel supported and valued, to enable us to continue to provide the high quality standard of patient care we pride ourselves on.

As part of this, we have been working with a third party agency to recruit nurses from abroad.

Since February 2022, we have welcomed 20 international nurses, with more than 22 currently in the pipeline. They come from as far away as India, the Philippines, Nigeria, Zambia, the Caribbean, and the Middle East.

Genelyn Cabrera, Registered Nurse at Practice Plus Group Hospital, Shepton Mallet, was one of our first international nurses.

She said: “Originally I am from the Philippines where I was a theatre nurse, then I worked in Dubai for two years throughout the pandemic. Practice Plus Group shouldered all of the training and study time I needed to pass the exams and become a UKregistered nurse.

“I have felt very supported and welcome every step of the way; I was met at the airport and shown to my hotel, was given help finding somewhere to live.

“The communication and all the information provided has been great and I am really enjoying looking after Practice Plus Group patients. My husband is also a qualified nurse and we have a six-year-old daughter who has just started school here.

“Education is important to me and I’m happy she will have a good education. We’re very happy in our new lives.”

Kay Muwanei recently joined Practice Plus Group Hospital, Ilford, from her native Zambia.

She said: “I worked as a ward nurse in Zambia for two years before deciding to move to the UK for the career opportunities. I am living in walking distance to the hospital and have made friends with the other nurses who have been recruited from abroad.

“I am working as a healthcare assistant while I’m supported to study for my final, practical exam to show that my work is up to the UK standard and I plan to continue a Masters in Healthcare Management that I started recently.

“The team have been so welcoming and I feel very supported. My husband is still at home in Zambia but we hope he can join me soon!” new colleagues and helping them settle in. It’s been so successful we’re now expanding to recruit to other positions such as operating department practitioners and radiographers.”

Matt James, Head of Resourcing, says: “We pay for flights and up to three months of accommodation for our international nurses, and we fund their Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) assessment, which is required so they can register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

“This includes a residential training course and exams, and once passed they can work with us as a fullyfledged nurse.

“We also set them up with a UK bank account, ensure their accommodation is suitable, register them with a doctor, and show them where their local place of worship is.

“Invariably each relocation throws up one or two situations that we couldn’t have predicted, like the weather being too cold and the need for a thicker duvet!

“The success of the programme to date is also dependent on our teams locally, with managers and heads of clinical services welcoming their