Foreign nurses prevented from coming to Ireland due to visa delays

Health staff from overseas who could relieve strain on under-pressure health system are being held up by new visa application process, according to a report

Countries such as India and the Philippines are a major source of nursing staff in Ireland, with 42 per cent of nurses in nursing homes here recruited from outside the EU. Picture: Getty

Foreign nurses who could help relieve the staffing pressures on the health service are being prevented from coming to Ireland by delays with visa applications, according to a report.

More than 7,000 workers across the Irish healthcare sector are currently unable to work due to having Covid-19 or being close contacts of a confirmed case.

A report submitted by Nursing Homes Ireland (NHI) to the government late last month to the government has stated that ...