Brexit will worsen UK's nursing shortage, and language tests are thwarting the solution

With or without Brexit, the United Kingdom is currently facing a grave nursing shortage, and it is unclear if efforts to plug its near 40,000-strong nurse gap are moving fast enough to maintain current standards of care for citizens across the union. Key points: The UK faces a severe nursing gap that necessitates growth from outside the EU Nursing registrations from EU nationals have plummeted since the 2016 Brexit referendum Filipino nurses may fill the gap, but complex English tests are hindering the process British hospitals badly need more nurses from non-European Union countries such as India and the Philippines — where English proficiency is high — to stem the exodus of EU-born nurses from the UK. In 2018, data commissioned by Britain's Nursing and Midwifery Council found that the number of new nurses coming from the EU to work in the UK dropped by 87 per cent between 2016/17 and 2017/18. IELTS language test cited as bottleneck for new nurses A potential future for the UK's health sector might be one filled with Filipino nurses such as Jobie Escalona. But for Ms Escalona, the International English Language Test System required to practise nursing initially stymied her, and continues to stymie thousands of experienced Filipino nurses that have applied for nursing jobs.