Celebrating nurses from home and abroad this International Women’s Day

Priding itself on its stellar international nurses’ programme, Practice Plus Group Hospital, Plymouth, is hosting a celebration breakfast for its staff this International Women’s Day (8 March), to recognise the wealth of diversity, culture and skills its team of nurses brings to the workplace.

International Women’s Day is celebrated in many countries around the world. It’s a day, originally set up by the United Nations, and gives a platform to highlight the need for equality and to recognise for their achievements amongst females. To spread awareness, the themes for 2024 are “Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress,” and “Inspire Inclusion”.

The hospital team believes that inclusivity and investment in staff is vital to building a strong work-force. As such, Hospital Director, Sarah Fell, has developed programmes with the wider Practice Plus Group Hospital teams to ensure that staff are recognised and rewarded in their careers regardless of gender, sexuality, race or age. Its International Nurses Mentoring Scheme is one such programme run successfully to welcome overseas nurses to Plymouth – to assist them with housing, tips on the local area, overcoming cultural barriers, making friends and settling into life in Devon.

For the past two years, Practice Plus Group, which has 11 hospitals across the UK, has welcomed over 20 nurses from all over the world, with many more scheduled to join the group in the coming months. They come from as far away as Cambodia, India, The Philippines, Nigeria, the Caribbean and the Middle East. Currently, 7 of these nurses work at its Plymouth-based hospital.

The group assists overseas nurses with administration and costs needed to work in the UK such as flights, up to three months of accommodation, plus funding their Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) assessment, which is required so that they can register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council, which includes residential training and exams. Once passed the nurses can work with the Group as a fully-qualified nurse.

Sarah Fell, Hospital Director, Practice Plus Hospital, Plymouth, says, “We are so proud of all our staff, though it is especially important to recognise the work of our local and international female colleagues this International Women’s Day. Nursing is still a profession which is predominately female, so equality and opportunity for all is vital to our success in attracting and retaining skilled staff. We work hard to continuously develop our International Nurses Mentoring Scheme to ensure that we attract amazing colleagues from overseas, but to also make them feel welcome, supported and included and rewarded in hospital life. We recognise how difficult it can be to settle into a new environment for anyone, let alone if there are cultural differences. Celebrations, like our colleague breakfast today, help to build on the strong connections we have with our teams.”

Speaking about her new career in the UK, Sharna Kay-Gray, from Jamaica, one of Practice Plus Group Hospital Plymouth’s overseas nurses, says she has been thriving living in Devon under the mentorship of Sarah and her team.

Sharna comments, “It was a big decision to move to the UK, and leave my family and friends to work in Plymouth. The hospital team have been amazing and have made me feel at home, matching me with a ‘work buddy’ to help me to settle in and get to know the local area. Whilst there are some differences, the biggest change has to be the unpredictable British weather as I’m used to so much sunshine in Jamaica!”

Practice Plus Group Hospital, Plymouth, provides a range of treatments including hip and knee replacements, cataract surgery and general surgery, to both NHS and private patients (via its Wellsoon service). NHS patients just need to ask their GP for under a referral to Practice Plus Group, and private patients who want to pay for themselves or use their insurance, can contact the private patient contact centre.

For current staff vacancies or general enquiries about Practice Plus Group, visit www.practiceplusgroup.com