4,722 Nigerian-Trained Nurses Work in the UK, Tops List of Foreign Medics

Based on data gathered from the British National Health Service (NHS) Digital, Nigeria has reached the top of the list of the United Kingdom’s (UK) newly registered medics over the past five years, with 4,722 Nigerian-trained nurses and midwives.

According to the data that was published yesterday by the Daily Mail UK online, one in three doctors and nurses, who joined the NHS in England, last year, were recruited from overseas, which raises concerns that the health service is becoming over-reliant on foreign recruits.

In an analysis by the BBC, data gathered from NHS Digital shows the share of healthcare staff recruited from overseas almost doubled between 2014 and 2021.

A breakdown showed that Nigeria was only surpassed by India and the Philippines with 21,357 and 17,825 nurses and midwives, respectively.

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Nigeria, also the highest ranked African country, is distantly followed by Zimbabwe (1,633), Ghana (1,333), Australia (774), Italy (764), Republic of Ireland (748), Romania (663), Kenya (641), Jamaica (498), Portugal (482), Nepal (451), United States (432), Spain (371), UAE (298), Guyana (264), Saudi Arabia (246), Greece (231) and Trinidad & Tobago (192).

According to the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN), there are over 250,000 registered nursing and midwifery professionals across Nigeria.

The analysis found that 34 percent of doctors who joined the health service in 2021 came from overseas, with India, Pakistan, and Nigeria the most popular countries.

This is nearly double the proportion of overseas recruits in 2015 when the figure was just 18 percent. However, the government played down the rise, stating that foreign recruitment has always been part of its workforce strategy.

Altogether, 39,558 UK-trained doctors and nurses joined the NHS in 2020-21. That is about 3,200 more than in 2014 and 15.