Ireland needs 50 Filipino nurses

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MANILA — Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz has confirmed a report of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in London that Triopharm Ltd., a foreign placement agency in Ireland, has expressed desire to hire 50 Filipino nurses for its client, Ardmore Care Home Group Limited.

“Our POLO in London has verified the 50 job orders of Triopharm Ltd. for nursing positions. It has tied up with Serviecon International Corporation, a licensed Philippine recruitment agency which is conducting sourcing and selection of qualified candidates,” said Baldoz.

The POLO reported that the minimum qualification requirements for candidates are as follows:(1) must be licensed or registered nurses in the Philippines; (2) with minimum two (2) years relevant working experience; and, (3) must be proficient in English, having obtained an IELTS overall score of 6.5. The qualified and chosen candidates shall work under a two-year contract with salary of € 35,000.00 per annum.

“This information about the need in Ireland for suitably qualified nurses to fill up vacancies in Health Service Executive (HSE) and care homes,” said the POLO report, “confirms the information shared by representatives of Ireland-based recruitment agencies, Kate Cowhig International Healthcare Recruitment and TTM Healthcare, whose representatives met with POLO officials in July and December 2014”.

The Health Service Executive is the equivalent of the UK’s National Health Service.

The POLO report further said that Kate Cowhig was supplying nurses to HSE and six Dublin University hospitals, particularly in the critical care and operating room specialty areas. It also said Kate Cowhig and TTM Healthcare were in the process of selecting their respective Philippine recruitment agency partners.

Baldoz said under Ireland’s current system, internationally recruited nurses (IRN) trained outside the EU or EEA would have to undergo a nursing adaptation or supervised nursing practiced program upon arrival in Ireland before they can register with the Irish Nursing and Midwifery Board, and later on work as registered nurses.

In registering as a nurse in Ireland, an applicant is required to complete the nursing adaptation program; accomplish an application form with photograph; birth certificate; copy of passport showing photograph and number; copy of marriage contract; transcript of training program (Form A); professional employment reference; certificate of current professional status; evidence of English competence; and Graduate Nurse Program/ Transition to Nursing Practice.

However, if an applicant is trained as nurse in an EU country, she must contact the Regulatory Body/Competent authority in the country where she was trained and inquire whether the said education/training and clinical practice experience as a nurse entitles her to Registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Board in Ireland (NMBI), in accordance with European Directive 2005/36/EC. If it is confirmed that an applicant is entitled to register as a nurse, a request for Certificate of Current Professional Status shall be sent directly to the Nursing and Midwifery Board Ireland which is a Verification of Registration and Good Standing.

Baldoz warned Filipino nurses wanting to go to Ireland to work, however, to only deal with licensed recruitment agencies in the Philippines and to visit the POEA for accurate and detailed information about the matter.