Health Education England (HEE) has launched a series of films for overseas nurses and their trainers to help support transition and integration into UK practice.
The new resource consists of several training videos aimed at familiarising overseas nurses to UK clinical environments, and to offer some insights and orientation to simulation based clinical scenarios. The resource is intended to be a support at the point of registration and is not a guide to passing the objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) exam as part of the Nursing and Midwifery Council part 2 test of competence. It does however offer tips and signpost to references that may be beneficial in preparing for the OSCE exam.
The films were developed at the request of NHS nurse educators who are tasked with supporting and integrating newly appointed international nurse recruits. The content is based on the Royal Marsden Manual of Clinical Nursing Procedures (9th Edition) and the European Resuscitation Council Guidelines (2015).
To help support the integration of overseas nurses into UK practice, employers are encouraged to share the resource with new recruits. They can download the training videos and use them flexibly as a revision aid.

*Credits: NHS Employers

The General Medical Council (GMC) will now routinely accept the Occupational English Test (OET) as proof of English language skills for overseas doctors who apply to work in the UK.
The change, implemented on the 6 February, follows the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s (NMC) decision to accept the test from November 2017 onwards.
Candidates will need to achieve a Level B in each skill (listening, reading, writing and speaking) to meet the GMC’s requirements. The test is designed for healthcare professionals with an emphasis on real situations medical staff might encounter.

The OET provides an alternative to the existing International Language Test System (IELTS), where prospective registrants for the GMC’s register must score 7.5 or more overall.
Further detail about the change is available on the GMC website.

*Credits: NHS Employers

NHS England are holding six regional engagement events in March 2018 which will provide participants with information about the Workforce Disability Equality Standard (WDES). Participants will be consulted on the proposals for the WDES metrics and also the indicative timetable for the publication of the WDES. 

The events will provide the opportunity for participants to give feedback, hear about best practice in relation to workforce disability equality, meet colleagues from across the NHS and strengthen networks.
The dates and locations for the engagement events are:
16th March – Leeds
19th March – Bristol
21st March – Newcastle
23th March - Cambridge
26th March - London
28th March - Birmingham
Learn more about the WDES or visit the NHS England website for more detailed information.  For further resources on various types of employment related disabilities take a look at our disability confident, workforce disability and learning disabilities web pages.

*Credits: NHS Employers

Access early working drafts of the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s skills annexe and standards of proficiency, which will apply to the new nursing associate role.

Read more here

From April 2018, pharmacists and pharmacy technicians will be required to go through the revalidation process, following changes made by the General Pharmaceutical Council. Find out more and access resources to support staff here 

Access Head first, a new mental wellness resource designed for the ambulance service. The tool provides supportive and reliable information to promote positive mental wellbeing, resilience and recovery for individuals, teams and organisations.  

Read more here