700 ‘Fake’ Nigerian Nurses Working For UK’s National Health Service?

700 ‘Fake’ Nigerian Nurses Working For UK’s National Health Service?

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“Since late September 2023, there has been a claim circulating on social media that reads, ‘In the UK, the NHS found 700 Nigerian nurses had fake qualifications as people stood in for their exam.’

This claim is also supported by other sources.

The claim goes further to state, ‘Nigeria is considered a ‘red list’ country for the recruitment of health professionals, meaning poaching of staff could endanger its own health and care system.’

But is there any truth to the claim that the NHS discovered 700 Nigerian nurses with fake qualifications and what is the significance of Nigeria being on the ‘red list’ in relation to this claim?”

Africa Check conducted an extensive search and found no news reports or credible evidence supporting the claim that the NHS discovered 700 working nurses, whether Nigerian or not, who were unqualified due to exam stand-ins.

Our investigation did, however, uncover online reports indicating that the UK’s Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) identified fraudulent activities at a testing center in Nigeria for international nurses.

It is important to note that the NMC is an independent non-governmental organization separate from the state-run NHS. The NMC is responsible for regulating nursing and midwifery professions, upholding professional standards, and maintaining a register of over 788,000 nurses and midwives eligible to practice in the UK.

It is worth mentioning that the tests mentioned are for nurses who are already qualified, and they aim to assess their proficiency in order to register with the NMC. These tests consist of a computer-based component, typically taken in the nurse’s home country, and a practical examination conducted in the UK.

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In a statement issued on September 20, the NMC reported discovering “anomalous data” in the computer-based test (CBT) results from the Yunnik Technologies Test Centre in Ibadan, Oyo state, Nigeria. The statement indicated suspicions of widespread fraudulent activity at this center, where it is believed that some individuals may have fraudulently obtained their CBT results, possibly through the use of a proxy tester.

As a result, the NMC declared all CBT results obtained at the Yunnik center invalid. However, out of the 515 nurses and midwives on its register who were tested at Yunnik, the NMC determined that only 48 “likely than not … obtained their results fraudulently.” These 48 cases are slated for further examination by the council’s investigating committee.

It’s important to emphasize that having 48 potentially fraudulent test results leading to registration with the UK’s nursing council does not equate to 700 unqualified nurses working for the NHS.

Furthermore, the NMC clarified that all nurses and midwives tested at Yunnik, whether on its register or in the application stage, will need to undergo retesting to obtain a new CBT result. The NMC spokesperson emphasized that no final decision has been reached, and this process does not pertain to individuals’ original nursing/midwifery qualifications.

In conclusion, the claim is false, and its reference to the “red list” may further indicate its inaccuracy.

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The latter part of the claim states: “Nigeria is considered a ‘red list’ country for the recruitment of health professionals, meaning poaching of staff could endanger its own health and care system.”

However, this implies that the UK recruiting health professionals from Nigeria could potentially jeopardize Nigeria’s healthcare system, rather than that of the UK.

The migration of healthcare professionals from less affluent to wealthier nations prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to establish its health workforce support and safeguards list. This catalog identifies countries where there is a critical need for healthcare professionals and encourages other nations not to actively recruit from these locations. Nigeria is one of 37 African countries featured on this safeguards list.

The UK government has incorporated the WHO list into its code of practice. The code explicitly states, “Countries on the WHO Health Workforce Support and Safeguards List are graded red, which means no active recruitment is permitted from these countries.”

This constitutes the “red list” mentioned in the claim.

Nurses from Nigeria can work in the UK but must not be actively sought out, as doing so may exacerbate healthcare challenges in Nigeria.

Credit: Africa Check

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