AROUND 1,000 nurses and midwives are expected to graduate from Northern Ireland universities in the next six months, with most expected to take up local posts.
This includes over 700 taking part in winter ceremonies this week at Queen’s University and Ulster University, meaning they will now be available for recruitment.
The rest are due to graduate in the summer along with 149 nursing students with the Open University.
The Department of Health say the number of university places for these roles has doubled over ten years from 2012/13 (680) to 2022/23 (1,335), and that university data shows that most intend to stay and work in Northern Ireland.
Despite the overall improvement, the Department added that “severe budgetary constraints” meant that nursing and midwifery places dropped back to their 2020 baseline of 1,025 in 2023/24.
Noting that this is still 50% higher than in 2012/13, the Department said it would again look to expand the number of places “when funding, and the assessment of priorities, permits”.
The news comes as health workers in Northern Ireland are protesting as they continue to wait for pay parity compared to the rest of the UK.
Stormont leaders are currently engaged in talks to secure an enhanced budget from the Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris.
Congratulating the graduates, Chief Nursing Officer Maria McIlgorm said: “Working in the HSC system is an enormously fulfilling career choice, providing a wealth of opportunities, training and professional development.
“I wish all of those nursing graduates the very best as they start out on their careers.”
As of September this year, there are a total of 28,338 nurses and midwives in Northern Ireland – 651 more than in the previous six months and nearly 4,000 more than five years ago.
The new graduates will include 644 nursing and midwifery graduates from Queen’s University as well as 356 nursing and mental health nursing graduates from Ulster University
300 of the graduates are also the first cohort to be funded as part of the New Decade, New Approach in 2020 where the Department of Health agreed to fund 900 nursing and midwifery undergraduate places over three years.
As well as locally trained nurses and midwives, by the end of October a total of 1,733 internationally-trained nurses hired through a regional recruitment drive had taken up posts within HSC Trusts in Northern Ireland, with 1,609 remaining in post.