NEWS

Internship applications triple as

graduates struggle to find work
Exclusive by Sally Gillen
Hundreds of newly qualified nurses
and midwives in Scotland are applying
for part-time internships because
they cannot find full-time work,
Nursing Standard has learned.
The number of graduates applying
for the year-long internships, which
involve working 22.5 hours a week
at band 5, has almost tripled in a
year, rising from 325 applicants in
2010 to 953 in 2011.
Nurse Kerry Longmore, who
graduated from Glasgow Caledonian
University in September 2010,
worked for an insurance company
for more than a year after
graduating because she could not
find nursing work, despite applying
for 74 jobs between July 2010
and December last year.
‘I did not get one interview,’ she said.
‘Initially I asked for feedback but then
I just gave up.’
Ms Longmore applied for an
internship in January last year and
was offered a place ten months later,
by which time she had been offered
work as a bank nurse.
‘Many nurses who are graduating
now have no hope,’ she said.
The internships were started by
NHS Education for Scotland as a job
guarantee scheme in 2002, but last
year it was remodelled as a part-time
internship programme following a
huge rise in applications.
RCN Scotland associate director
Ellen Hudson said the RCN is
concerned the internships could be
used by health boards as a way of
avoiding employing newly qualified
nurses on a full-time basis.
‘We support the principles of the
scheme, which can help new nurses
consolidate their skills, but we do not
want to see boards repeatedly using
interns year after year,’ she said. ‘It
would also be interesting to know
how interns manage on part-time
hours. I do know of some working in
supermarkets to top up their salaries.’

Workforce numbers
Ms Hudson added that the RCN
planned to lobby the Scottish
parliament to find out how many
nurses who complete an internship
CHRISTOPHER WOODS

take up a nursing post in Scotland.

Statistics published by NHS National
Services Scotland last month show the
number of nurses and midwives in
post fell by 3.7 per cent between
Enthusiasm for campaign message spreads September 2009 and December 2011,
a reduction of 2,190 posts.
Nurses at an NHS trust in Kent are including Karina Greenan (pictured  A Scottish Government
backing Nursing Standard’s Care with a patient) focused on the four  spokesperson said the number of nurses
campaign by devoting each Friday this aspects of the campaign during  and midwives trained is determined
month to promoting the initiative. a weekly ward visit.  by ‘robust workforce planning’ that
The campaign calls for staff to  Meanwhile, 50 nurses from  includes boards’ predictions for the
communicate with care, assist  Commonwealth countries  numbers of staff they will require.
with toileting, relieve pain  such as Tanzania, Lesotho,  She said: ‘In 2010/11, nursing and
effectively and encourage  Zimbabwe, India and Malta  midwifery pre-registration student
adequate nutrition. It is  have signed up to the campaign.  intake was reduced by 12 per cent and
based on the four most frequent concerns  The group was among some 200  in the coming session it will be reduced
raised by patients and carers.  nurses who attended the inaugural  by a further 10 per cent to ensure there
Senior nurses at East Kent Hospitals  Commonwealth Nurses Federation  is no over-supply of newly qualified
University NHS Foundation Trust,  conference in London earlier this month. nurses and midwives.’

NURSING STANDARD  march 28 :: vol 26 no 30 :: 2012  11 

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