{"id":695783,"date":"2026-01-14T16:54:17","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T16:54:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/695783\/"},"modified":"2026-01-14T16:54:17","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T16:54:17","slug":"how-international-nurses-are-powering-londons-healthcare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/695783\/","title":{"rendered":"how international nurses are powering London\u2019s healthcare"},"content":{"rendered":"

Amid doctors\u2019 strikes, pay disputes and anti-migration rhetoric, the dedication and excellence of London\u2019s international nurses and healthcare staff has been recognised by the Royal College of Nursing\u2019s Rising Star awards.<\/strong><\/p>\n

These awards celebrate those who go above and beyond in their roles, improving patient outcomes, supporting colleagues, and shaping the future of care.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s awards shine a particular light on internationally trained nurses working across London, whose contributions span hospital care, staff education and social care.<\/p>\n

RCN Regional Director for London, Lisa Elliott, said: \u201cThrough their innovation, leadership, and compassion, they\u2019ve raised the bar for patient care and inspired those around them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cTheir dedication not only transforms lives but empowers colleagues to strive for excellence. These winners are true trailblazers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking with the South West Londoner, three Rising Star winners gave their thoughts on the meaning of the award.<\/p>\n

Naveen Harikumar \u2013 Northwick Park Hospital<\/p>\n

\"ANaveen Harikuman: Nurse and Mentor | Image Credit: RCN<\/strong><\/p>\n

For Harikumar, this award was not just a recognition of his own dedication, but of the support and mentoring he received along the way, which he is now determined to pass on.<\/p>\n

Hailing from Kerala in southern India, he has been a hospital nurse since 2015, before coming to the UK in 2019, where he joined the stroke unit at Northwick Park Hospital, one of the busiest in the country.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Harikumar is now a Practice Development Nurse and is involved in diaspora organisations, food bank collections, stem cell donor campaigns, and career workshops, mostly supporting overseas nurses.<\/p>\n

He hopes to provide the support that he knows new international nurses need.<\/p>\n

Harikumar said: \u201cIt was an honour to win the award. It reflects the mentorship and support I received, and the effort to pass that support on.<\/p>\n

\u201cI understand the anxiety, stress, excitement, and pressure that come with starting work in a new country. <\/p>\n

\u201cNew systems, new language, being away from family: it\u2019s a lot.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy role allows me to support international nurses because I know how they feel. I try my level best to support them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Establishing a holistic orientation framework, Harikumar\u2019s programme provided emotional support alongside the necessary clinical skills, with clear plans, regular check-ins, and ongoing mentorship.<\/p>\n

Harikumar added that in his field of stroke care and rehabilitation, more than half the nurses are international.<\/p>\n

The Rising Star winner concluded: \u201cOverseas nurses are everywhere in the NHS and there is no disparity in quality or contribution.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany patients recognise this and openly say they don\u2019t believe the NHS could function without international nurses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katherine Anne Uy Saeb \u2013 Northwick Park Hospital<\/p>\n

\"AKatherine Anne Uy Saeb, champion of the Time to Turn initiative | Image Credit: RCN<\/strong><\/p>\n

Katherine Anne Uy Saeb\u2019s journey to becoming a Clinical Ward Sister at Northwick Park Hospital began in the Philippines, where she trained and worked in senior nursing roles.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Saeb said: \u201cWhen you come to the UK, there are gaps at first, but we don\u2019t come as empty plates. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe bring experience, leadership and management skills.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katherine was recognised as an RCN Rising Star for pioneering the Time to Turn initiative, which reduced skin damage cases on her ward by nearly 90%.\u00a0<\/p>\n

During busy periods, patients who are unable to move themselves are sometimes left by overworked nurses in the same position for a long period of time can develop \u2018bed sores\u2019.<\/p>\n

Using simple but effective tools, including timed prompts and visual reminders, the initiative focused on consistent patient repositioning to prevent skin and tissue damage.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The idea emerged at a time when pressure on wards was intense, and staff morale was low.<\/p>\n

Saeb said: \u201cI asked everyone for their opinion, from the housekeeper to the specialists.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted everyone involved. I didn\u2019t want it to be just my idea.\u201d<\/p>\n

Saeb recalled that the message spread, with a research coordinator volunteering to be the \u2018alarm keeper\u2019, a role that went outside her job description.<\/p>\n

Soon, even the head of nursing joined the movement.<\/p>\n

But the impact of Time to Turn went far beyond clinical outcomes.<\/p>\n

Saeb reported morale improvement, rebuilt relationships with therapists and restored pride in the ward following a high-pressure \u2018headless chicken\u2019 period, marred by resignations and burnout.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For Saeb, the award is a moment of recognition not just for her, but for her colleagues.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Rising Star winner said: \u201cAt last, someone has seen our efforts.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are now role models. Other nurses know there is someone who can support them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Carolyn Kaira \u2013 KYN Bickley Care Home<\/p>\n

\"\"Carolyn Kaira, the care home nurse who helped assess pain levels in dementia patients | Image Credit: RCN<\/strong><\/p>\n

While hospital nursing often dominates public attention, Carolyn Kaira\u2019s work highlights the critical, and often overlooked, role of nurses in social care.<\/p>\n

Arriving in the UK from Zambia in 2018, Kaira has been a nurse for 33 years, working for the mines, private hospitals in Lusaka and Medical Air Rescue, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience with her.<\/p>\n

Kaira applies this expertise to working with elderly patients in care homes, attending to their mental and physical needs.<\/p>\n

Her work improving pain assessment for residents living with dementia, earned her this year\u2019s Rising Star award.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cHow do you identify pain when someone can\u2019t tell you? That\u2019s what we had to figure out.\u201d<\/p>\n

By introducing structured assessment tools and working closely with St Christopher\u2019s Hospice, her team was able to better understand residents\u2019 pain levels and provide more appropriate care and medication.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Kaira said: \u201cDementia is so hard; these people are fading away.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cNurses are the ones there day to day, helping them through that.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Kaira, winning the RCN Rising Star Award sends an important message about the value of social care nursing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cIt tells everyone that nurses are important, that we do great and mighty things; it pushes me to work harder and do more.<\/p>\n

\u201cNursing is about love, not about money. In my country, I earned \u00a3200 a month.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about caring for people who cannot care for themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

International nurses are vital to the survival of the UK social care system. Yet new exams and immigration restrictions are set to make Health and Social Care Worker visas harder to obtain.<\/p>\n

Kaira said: \u201cBeing an immigrant is hard enough, but before you even come to the UK, you have to pass a series of demanding exams; IELTS, OET, then the CBT, followed by the OSCE.\u201d<\/p>\n

The restriction on care workers bringing family members to the UK is having a particularly sharp impact.<\/p>\n

Nuffield Trust researcher, Cyril Lobont, said: \u201cSocial care has been entirely reliant on recruitment of non-UK nationals to meet growing demand.<\/p>\n

\u201cHealth and Social Care Worker visas were once the main source of overseas social care workers, but the number of visas being granted has now fallen close to zero.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen immigration policy is implemented suddenly without proper coordination across government and with little regard for the impact on essential care services, changes can come in at speed, but the problems they create then take years to fix.\u201d<\/p>\n

The government\u2019s 2025 Fair Pay Agreement was aimed at accounting for this downturn by attracting more domestic recruits into social care.<\/p>\n

Yet this is not set to take effect until 2028, when \u00a3500 million has been pledged for the first year of implementation to drive an influx of British nationals into this vital sector.<\/p>\n

John Considine, RCN communications manager, said: \u201cPoliticians are using toxic anti-immigrant rhetoric while being completely dependent on international nurses to keep health and social care functioning.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s speaking out of both sides of the mouth, applauding while dismissing. We say: stop it, be grown-ups.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe NHS and social care would not survive without people like Carolyn, Katherine, and Naveen.\u201d<\/p>\n

A drop in flu cases in the first week of 2026 has reduced some pressure on the NHS, yet the freezing temperatures are set to add to the service\u2019s strains.<\/p>\n

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said on January 5: \u201cBitterly cold weather is creating new challenges for the health service this week.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is still a long way to go and the hard graft doesn\u2019t stop here.\u201d<\/p>\n

The full list of winners is: Carolyn Kaira<\/strong>, KYN Bickley Care Home; Divanshi Sharma<\/strong>, University of Roehampton; Andrea Rosete<\/strong>, Charing Cross Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust; Katherine Anne Uy Saeb,<\/strong> Northwick Park Hospital, London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust; Rexford Osei-Bonsu<\/strong>, Brixton Donor Centre, NHS Blood and Transplant; Smita Patelia, <\/strong>Lynde House Care Home, Barchester Healthcare; Von Jerold Buendia, <\/strong>St Mary\u2019s Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, Fatima Sonko, <\/strong>Guy\u2019s and St Thomas\u2019 NHS Foundation Trust, Maria Kristina Talusan, <\/strong>Barking, Havering, Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust; Naveen Harikumar, <\/strong>Northwick Park Hospital, London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust; Lovehan Dacres<\/strong>, Hammersmith Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Ruhel Ahmed<\/strong>, Parsons Green Health Centre, Central London Community Healthcare NHS.<\/p>\n

Main Image Credit: The Royal College of Nursing<\/p>\n

Read next: TfL shortlists Putney Bridge station for accessibility study after years of campaigning<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Amid doctors\u2019 strikes, pay disputes and anti-migration rhetoric, the dedication and excellence of London\u2019s international nurses and healthcare…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":695784,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7757],"tags":[748,393,4884,4348,106316,257,211,5770,47630,3593,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-695783","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-healthcare","12":"tag-healthcare-workers","13":"tag-london","14":"tag-nhs","15":"tag-nurses","16":"tag-rising-stars","17":"tag-social-care","18":"tag-uk","19":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115894502499403560","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/695783","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=695783"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/695783\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/695784"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=695783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=695783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=695783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}