We've warned of it time and time again, now it seems that the Lords have woken up to the danger posed by foreign nurses and NHS staff who cannot speak proper English.
Stating the obvious, Lord Winston said that "...communication between the patient and the professional is of vital importance....We run the risk of losing it with this issue of nurses who can’t speak the English language.
We all knew that, it's common sense, how do you communicate medical details to someone who can only manage broken English?
How many times is something lost in translation and the patient suffers?
What effect does it have on a patients confidence that they'll receive good treatment when they can't even have a conversation in English with the nurses?
How is it assured that a foreign nurse or doctor meets the same professional standards demanded of a British qualified doctor or nurse?
According to Lord Winston they have been trained in a "completely different way" to British nurses, something that really doesn't fill one with confidence.
Communication is key to ensuring that the right medical care is delivered, it's as simple as that.
The strict laws imposed upon us by the EU concerning free movement of labour as good as guarantee that patient care will suffer and that lives will be put at risk.
Full Story - Daily Mail
