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Internationally educated nursing and midwifery staff experiences at LNWH

A mixed methods study exploring the experiences of internationally educated nursing and midwifery staff working at London North West NHS Healthcare Trust

Research on International educated nurses and midwives Support Experiences in the UK

The RISE Study is a research project funded by the RCN Foundation which focuses on understanding the experiences of internationally educated nurses and midwives working at London North West NHS Healthcare Trust (LNWH). 

This is an under researched issue within nursing and midwifery, and the proposed study has the potential to address a major gap in the support offered to international educated staff in the UK. The best practice guidance can inform strategies that could be used to better support and develop this workforce, which in turn may have a positive impact on recruitment and retention, addressing a major national issue within the NHS.

A mixed methods study to explore the experiences of internationally educated nursing and midwifery staff working at the LNWH NHS Trust

The NHS remains understaffed, with over 46,828 nursing and midwifery vacancies reported in England (NHS Digital, 2023), with recruitment and retention potentially problematic. Studies describe factors including stress and a negative workplace culture as reasons for leaving nursing/midwifery roles (NMC, 2022), with over 25,000 nurses leaving the register in 2022 due to burnout, workload and concerns about poor care (RCN, 2023). The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan describes strategies to reduce the numbers of staff leaving the NHS, to include three factors: an improved culture, leadership and wellbeing (NHS England, 2023).

It is known that one in five NHS nurses/midwives are from the Global Majority, with this number being higher in London (NHS England, n.d). In LNWH Trust, over 900 internationally educated and global majority nurses have been recruited in the last six years through the overseas nursing programme. To date the experiences of this group of nurses have not been explored, thus their needs and views relating to recruitment, retention, support and further development remain unknown.

The information gathered from this study will be used to co-produce best practice guidance for the recruitment, retention, support and development of internationally educated nurses and midwives.

The results will be disseminated through a peer-reviewed, open access publication and conference posters/presentations.

The study

The study will be undertaken using a mixed methods approach. 

  • Systematic literature review: to collect and synthesise evidence on barriers and facilitators to career progression and leadership among internationally educated nurses and midwives in the UK
  • Survey of internal staff: an online questionnaire will be designed based on the findings the systematic review to explore the experiences of internationally educated nurses and midwives working at LNWH
  • Qualitative study: data gathered from the survey will be used to develop a topic guide for qualitative interviews
  • Co-production workshops: Findings from the above will be collated and analysed. A series of three workshops will be conducted with internationally educated nurses and midwives to co-produce best practice guidance in the recruitment, retention, support and development
IENM study at LNWH

RCN Foundation commissions study to explore the experiences of internationally educated nursing and midwifery staff

LNWH NHS Trust will undertake the study over a two-year period.