Information for Nurses
The UK Job Market
What does it cost the nurse to use our services?
Registration with the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
Nurse training in the UK
New to the uk
No language test needed
Insurance
Accommodation and travel
Recommended literature in medical English
How will I be paid?

Information for Nurses

Scanloc (Scandinavian Locums Limited) is a Medical Recruitment Agency that has supplied hospitals in Great Britain with Scandinavian doctors since 1995. The Scanloc nursing agency started in February 2005 in order to be able to recruit nurses to work together with our doctors and form complete operating theatre teams. Our aim is to provide a high quality and personalised service. Our services are free of charge to you.

We are registered with the Department of Health for international recruitment to the NHS and with the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI).

Our knowledge of both the Scandinavian and UK health systems enable us to help you get your paperwork done so that you can work in the UK, find a job and smooth the transition to working in the UK.

Scanloc adheres to the NHS Executives code of practice in the Appointment of temporary workers. Much of what we ask you to do is required by this code, it may on occasions seem tedious but be patient we will assist you through the red tape to an worthwhile locum or substantive post.

If you have worked through Scanloc previously and would like to return for more work check your documentation is up to date and let us know when you want to work and any preferences. If you have never worked in the UK before visit New to the UK to find out about UK registration and more.

The UK Job Market

There is a vast job market within the UK health system. The number of jobs varies enormously with the time of year, speciality and geographic location. We keep a constant check on these changes in order to provide the best jobs for our nurses. We provide jobs from a few weeks length to several months, as well as permanent jobs.

What does it cost the nurse to use our services?

The nurse does not have to pay for the service provided by Scanloc. The hospitals pay for the service.

Registration with the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)

If you are a EU citizen and have a nursing qualification from a EU university or have a specialist diploma from a EU country you may apply to the NMC in the UK for full registration.
If your background is non-european, please contact us for further information.

Nurse Training in the UK

It is possible to take either a diploma or degree course to qualify as a registered general nurse. Education is provided by universities, with about half the time in local hospital and community settings and the other half theoretical. The first year is a Common Foundation Programme, which will introduce you to the basic principles of nursing. You will then specialise in either adult, children's, mental health or learning disability nursing. Full time diploma courses last three years. Degree courses last three or four years.

Midwifery education is also at diploma or degree level.

New to the UK

The process of getting a job

Stage 1 - starting the ball rolling. At this stage some things which may take time should be started up so as not to delay the whole process.

• Register with Scanloc. Register.
  We will send you an information pack with details of the documentation needed.
• If you have not previously registered with The MNC start up the process now.
• You need to be vaccinated against Hepatitis B. If you have been vaccinated check your Hepatitis B titre levels. If they are less than 100 miu/ml you will need a booster dose. It can take up to 3 months to attain adequate titre levels from vaccination so we strongly advise that you start the vaccination process immediately

Stage 2 - Getting your paperwork together. The hospitals will adhere to the NHS code of practice which requires them to check this documentation.
The information pack we send to you will contain the following:

• Scanloc Registration form (please send this document back to us as soon as possible).
• Up to date CV (a description of yourself and your career) in English via e-mail if possible in Word-format. The information pack will contain advice as to how to write a good CV.
• Health questionnaire.
• Information about how to obtain a Police check statement in English from the police authority in your country.
• Information regarding how to register with the NMC. You need a NMC certificate in order to be able to practice in the UK. When you have the certificate send a copy to us. Your NMC annual retention certificate will also be needed if you have been registered with the NMC for more than one year.
• `The Locums Friend`, a booklet bursting with information about what it is like to work as a doctor or nurse in the UK.

As soon as they are ready let Scanloc have the above five documents plus a copy of your passport and two passport sized photos for your ID badge. Please send each document as soon as it is available as the more we have the easier it is to find a suitable job for you.

Stage 3 - Let us know when you want to work, and if you have any geographical or other preferences. It is then up to us to meet your requirements and find a suitable job. We may have a suitable post in our list of vacant posts but we may need to ring to our contacts or send mail shots.
It is therefore very important that once you have agreed upon your availability with us that these dates are kept. Any change should be notified to us immediately.
You may choose either that we contact you before we put your name and CV forward for any vacancy or that you agree that we may apply for any suitable vacancy that fits your requirements.
This is a crucial time in the job placement and we must be able to get in touch with you (mobile number, home number, hospital number etc.) as the jobs are often on a `first come first served` basis.
Your CV and references will be presented to the Hospital for approval together with other applicants. We would normally have a response from the hospital`s staffing department within one week. Once we have a firm job offer we will contact you and ask if you wish to accept the offer. If you accept the offer a contract will be issued and sent to you.
Once you have accepted a job it is seen as very poor if you then back out, both your own and our reputation would be severely damaged.

No language test needed

No English test is required if you apply for NMC registration as an EU-citizen. However the hospitals requires that your standard of English is good.

Insurance

All NHS posts are covered by a hospital insurance scheme which applies whilst you are working within the hospital. However, any work carried out externally to the hospital, e.g., a roadside accident, will not be covered under this scheme, and we therefore advise that you obtain your own Indemnity Insurance through the Royal College of Nursing.

Accommodation and travel

Scanloc negotiates accommodation from contract to contract. We will try and negotiate free or inexpensive accomodation as often as possible. The accommodation is often rather basic, you can expect to share a kitchen and bathroom. Scanloc can help you to find alternative accommodation if required.
You pay your own travel costs to and from the UK. Most hospitals pay travel expenses from your port of entry in the UK to and from the hospital. On occasions Scanloc has been able to negotiate travel costs from the hospital.

Recommended literature in medical English

“A Manual of English for the Overseas Doctor “ , Joy Parkinson. ISBN 0-443-06136-X

“English in Medicine” , Glendinning & Holmström. ISBN 0-521-59570-3

How will I be paid?

When you work for the NHS through Scanloc you will be paid on a weekly basis directly into your British bank account. Scanloc will assist you in opening a British account.

When you fax in your time sheet ( the details of how many hours you have worked during the week) we will calculate your pay, deposit it into your bank account and post a payslip to you. The payslip contains details of your week`s payments including holiday pay and the amount we have debited for income tax and National Insurance (NI).