HOSPITAL chiefs have welcomed plans to amend English language requirements which could make it easier to recruit nurses from overseas.

East Lancashire NHS Hospitals Trust said that nurses will still have to meet the high standards set out by the tests, but can achieve them over two sittings rather than one which could speed up the recruitment process.

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The trust recently recruited 80 Filipino nurses to fill vacancies of which around 15 have arrived to start work.

The changes have been introduced by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) in a bid to address staffing pressures in the health service.

Nurses and midwives coming from overseas and within the European economic area were expected to achieve a level seven in the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) in reading, writing, speaking and listening in a single sitting.

They can now take the exam twice and secure a pass if they hit the standard in all four areas in at least one of the two tests.

Julie Molyneaux, the trust’s assistant director of nursing, said the high standards required will still need to be met.

She said: “The IELTS qualification is widely recognised as the international benchmark for English language and overseas nurses being recruited by the trust must pass the demanding IELTS exam and demonstrate excellent spoken and written English before they can begin work in our hospitals and in the community.

“The NMC’s decision will enable those nurses who have already gone through the recruitment process and then passed all necessary parts of the test to take up their posts sooner.”

Russ McLean, chairman of the Pennine Lancashire Patient Voices Group, said he has been expressing concerns for years about the “number of health care professionals who cannot communicate effectively in the English language”.

“I have asked the trust, can you give me assurances these nurses will have enough of a command of English to be able to communicate and they have given me that assurance. I have to take that at face value,” he said.

But he warned “there can be no excuse for organisations who do not apply tests and checks.It is counterproductive for health care organisations and could be dangerous for patients”