Foreign doctors must prove they can speak good English

All doctors who want to practise in the NHS in England will have to prove they can speak a good standard of English before they are allowed to work under strict new rules Health Secretary Andrew Lansley announced today. The new proposals will ensure that patients are treated by doctors who they can understand, and who can understand them.

All doctors who want to work in the UK will have to be registered with the General Medical Council (GMC) before applying for medical posts. Currently only doctors from outside the European Economic Area (EEA), for example, doctors from Pakistan, Canada or Australia, are routinely scrutinised for their language skills before being able to register with the GMC. European law prevents the GMC from vetting the language skills of doctors from within Europe.

The Department of Health will give the GMC explicit new powers to be able to take action against doctors when there are concerns about their ability to speak English.

In addition, the Department will introduce new powers so doctors can be vetted for their language skills at local level. NHS doctors are overseen by ‘responsible officers’, who make sure that they are appropriately trained and qualified for the role. The regulations governing the roles of these responsible officers will be amended so that they have a mandatory duty to check the English language skills of all foreign doctors before they can be employed by the NHS in England.

Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said:

“There is considerable anxiety amongst the public about the ability of doctors to speak English properly. We will amend the legislation to prevent all foreign doctors with a poor grasp of English from working in England. If you can’t speak adequate English, you can’t treat patients.”

The Department of Health will continue to work with the General Medical Council to implement the changes, so that the GMC has more effective means of ensuring that all doctors practising in the UK have the language skills they need.

Community groups & general practice with the Mental Health Strategic Partnership

Following the publication of the Government’s mental health strategy, No Health without Mental Health in February 2011, Centre for Mental Health has  launched two briefings in conjunction with the Mental Health Strategic Partnership, aimed at general practice and community organisations.

The Mental Health Strategic Partnership brings together eight national mental health voluntary sector organisations to work with the Department of Health to support effective communication about mental health policy and practice in England. The partnership comprises of the Afyia Trust; Mental Health Foundation; Mental Health Helplines Partnership;  Mental Health Providers Forum; Mind; National Survivors User Network; Centre for Mental Health and Rethink Mental Illness.

The two briefings, No Health without Mental Health: a guide for general practice and No Health without Mental Health: a guide for community organisations, explain in practical terms the ways in which general practitioners, community groups and voluntary organisations can improve life chances for people with mental health conditions.

Download the briefing papers here:

http://www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/news/2011_Centre_launches_briefing_sheets.aspx

Mental health provision is failing young BME people

The Afiya Trust reports that mental health provision is not adequately meeting the needs of BME children and that their difficulties are likely to reach crisis point before they come to the attention of services.

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Source: Guardian

UK immigrant screening misses most latent TB

(Reuters) – British tuberculosis screening for new immigrants fails to detect most imported cases of latent disease and screening should be widened to include more people from the Indian subcontinent, scientists said on Thursday.

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HIV-positive migrants treated badly in detention

New research by the charity Medical justice has revealed that HIV-postive migrants often have their treatment disrupted and many are deported without access to their life-saving drugs.

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Counselling refugee young people: an exploration of therapeutic approaches

Abstract

The cap that never was

Article first published 06 January 2011 (Institute of Race Relations)

By Anne Singh

Anne Singh reports on recent changes to policy affecting migrant care workers.

You would be forgiven for missing it, but in mid December 2010, amidst the sustained stream of government announcements about restricting the numbers of spouses, students, migrant workers – pretty much anyone – coming to the UK from outside the EEA, there was a short-lived victory for migrant care workers when a court ruled that the government’s temporary cap on migrant workers was unlawful and, indeed, had never existed at all.

However, the government acted quickly – not to review and reconsider all those sponsorship applications unlawfully refused but – to ‘reinstate’ the cap that never was.

In June 2010, Theresa May announced, ahead of a permanent cap, a temporary limit on the number of migrant workers from outside the EEA to be allowed into the UK. Between June 2010 and April 2011, she proceeded to limit the number of workers to 24,100 – down around 5 per cent on the same period in 2009/10. The temporary cap was aimed at preventing a rush of applications for ’sponsorship certificates’ before the permanent cap was set. The cap specifically reduced the number of sponsorship certificates which could be issued by employers in Tier 1 and Tier 2 employment.

There were expressions of concern even protest from various sectors who depend on migrant workers, indeed, concerns were raised by directors of children’s services who called for a rethink of the immigration cap because it could exacerbate the shortage of experienced children’s social workers.

Impact on care sector

However, in the care sector the cap had an immediate impact. It is thought that about 13 per cent of staff employed in the care sector are migrant workers from outside the EEA. A large number are from the Philippines, some are from India, South Africa and other African countries.

The temporary cap was introduced with complete disregard for care providers and their staffing requirements and certainly with no regard for the continuity of care for those in residential homes who rely on a familiar face and who would find it profoundly distressing to lose them – if staff were forced to quit their jobs. Care workers are on the front line of caring for those in residential care homes.

The immediate effect was on sponsorship certificates for those preparing to come to the UK to work. With the cap in place, refusals were arbitrary, that is, based on no consideration of the need for the worker (senior care workers are a recognised skills shortage area) or indeed the skills and experience the worker would bring to the UK. Furthermore, there was profound concern that thousands of care workers could have been forced to leave their jobs as a result of the cap. The move specifically affected care workers in care homes who are studying for NVQs and may wish to move up to Tier 2 as part of their career progression. These students would have to either enrol themselves on other courses and pay thousands of pounds in tuition fees in order to qualify for a Tier 4 student visa (the government also proposes to cut back on non-graduate students) or leave the country.

The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI) and the English Community Care Association (ECCA), which represents independent care providers, initiated a judicial review against the government’s temporary cap on the grounds that the UK Border Agency (UKBA) did not follow proper parliamentary procedure when it introduced an interim cap.

In recognition of the high public interest in the issue, the claim for judicial review was considered by a Lord Justice of the Court of Appeal. The judicial review was heard on 16 December 2010, five months after the introduction of the cap and many refused applications later. Contrary to the usual procedure of handing down written judgment after a few weeks, the Court gave its decision on the day and decided that the cap had not been introduced according to proper procedures and was therefore unlawful. In effect, there never had been an interim cap for Tier 1 or Tier 2 migrant workers from outside the EEA.

Cynicism and government capers

Cynicism that the court’s prompt judgment would allow the government to move quickly to properly ‘lay’ the interim cap before parliament in accordance with procedures and further would fail to review those unlawfully refused applications for sponsorship, was well-founded. The UKBA has developed a modus operandi of dealing with judicial decisions it don’t like: either introduce ’same but different’ provisions or ignore it for as long as possible[1] in the hope another court will disagree. Indeed, this legal victory quickly rang rather hollow as by the 21 December 2010, the government had laid the changes before parliament to introduce an interim cap on Tier 1 and Tier 2 migrants,

However, the importance of this litigation should not be underestimated. Whilst JCWI have a venerable history of legal campaigning, groups of employers – like ECCA – are new to such action and their stand, however self-serving, has also served to highlight the plight of migrant care workers and the impact on those for whom they care.

FOOTNOTE

[1] R (Baiai and Others) [2007] EWCA Civ 478; ZO (Somalia) [2009] EWCA Civ 442.

HAT News is precluded from expressing a corporate view: any opinions expressed are therefore those of the authors.

RELATED LINKS

JCWI – Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (http://www.jcwi.org.uk/)
The English Community Care Association (ECCA) (http://www.ecca.org.uk/)

UKBA press release: ‘Temporary limit on migrant workers is back up and running’ (http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/media-centre/news/Damiangreen-limitstatement)

Unpaid volunteers prop up health system

(IRIN) – Some 22,000 community health volunteers in Afghanistan are vital to the country’s health system but some are beginning to wonder if they might provide a more effective service if they were paid, and had formal work contracts.

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Improving maternity care for asylum seekers

Maternity Action has received funding from Comic Relief to develop and pilot a training programme for midwives to improve maternity care for refugees and asylum seekers.  The training programme will be trialled at four pilot sites in early 2011: London, the north of England, Wales and Scotland.  The funder has expressed interest in funding the rollout of the training across the UK.

The training will consist of a one day introductory course aimed at all midwives, and a one day advanced course for midwives with a special interest in working with refugees and asylum seekers.  The project will also develop further resources to support midwives working with refugees and asylum seekers which will be available on the web.

As part of the development of the training, Maternity Action is conducting research with midwives on their experience of working with refugees and asylum seekers.  We are keen to speak to midwives with specialist responsibilities in this area.  The interviews are phone-based and take about fifteen minutes.  If you are interested in taking part, please contact Helen Beecher Bryant on 020 7253 2288 or [email protected]

Maternity Action is inviting maternity services to register their interest in participating in the rollout of the training.  Pending approval by the funder, this will commence in April 2011.  The training will be provided free of charge.  Maternity Action will provide the trainer and supporting materials.  Maternity services are asked to provide a suitable training venue and to release staff to attend the course.

For more information about the training, please contact Beba Parker on 020 7253 2288 or [email protected]

Download ‘Project outline’

Download ‘Register interest form’

Source: Maternity Action

Marriage, ill health makes you poorer

(IRIN) – Uncertain harvests are a perennial risk for rural Afghans, but two events stand out as exacerbating poverty – ill health, and the high cost of getting married, according to a new report.

CLICK ON LINK BELOW FOR FULL REPORT
Http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=91254

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