CAREER MANAGEMENT FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONALS

GLOBAL RECRUITMENT CAMPAIGN

The NHS is struggling to recruit doctors from overseas, the government's own figures suggest.

Ministers launched a major campaign in August 2001 to get at least 1,000 foreign doctors to take up NHS posts within four years.

However, figures show that just 136 overseas doctors have so far signed up for jobs under the scheme.

Overall, 47 hospital consultants and 89 GPs from abroad have taken up jobs since the campaign was launched.

This follows a major advertising campaign in medical journals and magazines, backed up with seminars and stands at international recruitment fairs in various countries around the world.

This is one of two campaigns which are a key part of the government's drive to boost the overall number of doctors working in the National Health Service. Ministers have pledged to recruit an extra 15,000 doctors by 2008.

Medical Staff are desperately needed by the NHS

In all, 7,500 extra consultants were promised by 2004. The reality is that this target was far from being met.

The need for workers is not restricted to doctors - 20,000 extra nurses have been promised.

On the bright side, the number of overseas nurses who want to work in the UK grew by almost 72% over the last year.

Almost half the applications came from the Philippines, which the government has said has a surplus of nurses. Many are asked to undergo a period of training of up to nine months before they can register and work in their full capacity in the UK.

A Department of Health spokesperson said: “International recruitment will continue to make a contribution to the provision of healthcare in the NHS.”

“We are expanding the workforce and have increased the number of training places, but international recruitment helps stabilise the nursing workforce and reduces the shortfall in the medium to long term.”

But the number of nurses fell despite all the measures taken because of the large number of nursing staff who are retiring in their 50's.