IELTS criterion adjusted to facilitate international employment in the NHS

In an effort to increase the quality of medical and nursing staff in the country, the Nursing Midwifery Council (NMC) has decided to amend the International English Language Testing System IELTS requirements for nurses and midwives coming from overseas and within the European Economic Area.

Previously, the aspirants needed to achieve a Level 7 in reading, writing, speaking and listening in the IELTS Academic Test. Even now, candidates are required to achieve a Level 7, however, this can now be done over two sittings.

Candidates can now appear for two tests within a span of six months and score a Level 7 at least once in each category across both the tests, without scoring less than 6.5 in any category.

This step could well be a means to qualitatively and quantitatively fill in the 9 percent vacancy in the NHS.

With a population of 140,000, international-born nurses in the NHS constitute a fifth of the total nurse and midwife workforce in England, Wales and Ireland (630,000). About 31,000 of these are from outside Europe.

A report by the Health and Social Care Information Centre suggests that 11 percent of this total population consists of nurses who are not British. These figures amply represent the hospitable environment for nurses from all nationalities in the NHS.

At The Flame Lily

At The Flame Lily, we recognise and appreciate the contribution of international nurses and midwives to the healthcare system in the UK, and try to do our part to welcome and provide a hospitable environment for them.

We understand the difficulties faced by international candidates who go through the application process and after entering the UK. Our aim is to help our nurses through their entire progress with objectively-designed methods. This includes providing an array of courses, ranging from ‘manual handling’ to ‘venepuncture’, to help nurses hone their skills.