Health Secretary Considering Overseas Care Sector Recruitment Drive

New proposals are being considered by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) for a international recruitment drive to ‘boost’ staffing numbers across the health and social care sector.

A DHSC spokesperson said,
‘Our new international recruitment taskforce is considering innovative ways to boost staffing numbers within health and adult social care.

Health secretary Steve Barclay is also looking to make it easier for regulators to check international qualifications so that staff can begin working more quickly.

It comes, however, just two weeks after concerns were expressed over NHS staffing in England when an analysis of workforce figures found the health service may be becoming over-reliant on recruits from abroad.

‘As part of this, we will work with the sector and recruitment experts to examine how to recruit staff from overseas more effectively into adult social care.’

The DHSC said that the aims would be to reduce bureaucracy and ensure ‘timely, efficient, safe and effective’ overseas recruitment to meet the needs of the sector.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said:
‘We are incredibly grateful to all our hard working care staff and are doing all we can to help them continue to offer the highest standards of care.

‘Our new international recruitment taskforce is considering innovative ways to boost staffing numbers within health and adult social care.

‘As part of this, we will work with the sector and recruitment experts to examine how to recruit staff from overseas more effectively into adult social care.’