Executive summary
The internationally educated workforce (IEW) plays a significant role within the NHS. The health care system would not be able to deliver its services without them. Supporting this critical cohort of staff and ensuring that they have an equitable, positive workplace experience and career is essential to amplify their talents and to the delivery of high-quality patient care.
This guide provides practical advice and examples of how to support the IEW, as an essential part of promoting a more inclusive and diverse NHS. It will focus on how trusts can support the IEW by looking at the following topics:
- Recruitment, onboarding, and induction.
- Creating a sense of belonging.
- Tools to address bullying and harassment.
- High quality training and inclusive talent management.
- Leadership and accountability.
These topics aim to support board members to have an increased awareness and understanding of the challenges that are often experienced by the IEW. The case studies within these topics provide practical interventions implemented by trust leaders that have developed a culture of respect and inclusivity, improved staff engagement, and improved workplace experience for the IEW. Each case study also contains top tips from trust leaders for action and impact.
The publication of NHS England's EDI Improvement Plan and Long-Term Workforce Plan (LTWP) further reaffirm the important role that the IEW have as part of the existing and future workforce.
The EDI Improvement plan outlines six high impact actions to address the widely known intersectional impacts of discrimination and bias. High impact action five places a requirement on NHS trusts to 'implement a comprehensive induction, onboarding and development programme for internationally recruited staff'. Success of implementation will be measured by:
- Creating a sense of belonging for internationally recruited staff as measured by the NHS Staff Survey.
- Reducing instances of bullying and harassment from team/line manager experienced by internationally recruited staff as measured by the NHS Staff Survey.
The LTWP outlines that the NHS will continue to rely on the IEW whilst growing the domestic workforce and beyond to meet patient demand. As such, the LTWP asks regulators to continue to streamline registration process for both domestic and international recruits.
Questions for the board
Below is a list of suggested questions that board members may find helpful as a check on progress. The answers should help prompt board level discussions about areas for improvement.