Vol. 519 No. 6
162 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Health and Children if he will assess whether more teaching hospitals could provide the six week assessment for nurses from overseas who are being recruited to fill vacancies in Dublin hospitals, in view of the fact that only one such hospital is currently providing places for such assessments. [14641/00]
All hospitals that take student nurses for all or part of their pre-registration training are approved by An Bord Altranais, the nursing board, to provide the six-week orientation and assessment period for nurses from overseas wishing to register in Ireland. This six-week period is flexible, in that it may be reduced if, in the opinion of experienced clinical nurses accustomed to assessing students, the full six weeks is unnecessary. Nurses who have trained in certain specified countries, where the training equates very closely with that provided here and where English is their first language, are exempted from this requirement as are nurses from the EU.
To date, overseas nurses recruited for the nursing home sector and one private hospital have been facilitated by one teaching hospital, and as other overseas nurses arrive, arrangements are in train to place them for the experience they need. Hospitals with schools of nursing attached to them are in a position to provide for their own recruits. If agencies are experiencing problems in this regard, they should contact An Bord Altranais, who will furnish them with the names of hospitals that are able to provide the experience necessary for registration.
