System for the Admission and Education of Foreign Nurses in the UK

Abstract

Objectives: Since 2006, Japan has admitted foreign nurses as nurse trainees as a part of the country’s Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the Philippines. However, as the government has no regulations regarding how agencies should conduct training, it is mostly conducted through trial and error. In order to find a more effective system, an investigation was conducted into the system in place in the UK, another advanced nation admits foreign nurses.
Method: Interviews were carried out with people in charge of the Overseas Nurses Programme (ONP) at two UK universities, and information was gathered regarding the foreign nurse admission system.
Results: Through the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), which manages training of foreign nurses, the UK has a system that assesses and guarantees the quality of foreign nurses. The NMC determines the acceptability of foreign nurses by testing English ability, nursing experience, and formal education. UK nurse certification applicants also must join an ONP. The ONP consists of 20 days protected learning and supervised practice. Supervised training is normally six months long but the NMC determines how long an applicant nurse must spend in the programme based upon the content of the nursing education the applicant received. Supervised training must be carried out at an NHS-approved independent facility, and an NMC-qualified mentor must supervise the applicant. The ONP’s final assessment is sent to the NMC to certify the registration with the NMC.
Discussion: The UK’s system assesses and confirms the quality of nursing applicants individually in several ways whereas Japan does so only through the national nursing examination. Clinical training content is left up to the agencies employing the nurse trainees. Existing training course at college and nurses association may be a good resource to develop foreign nurses and to guarantee the quality of foreign nurses.