The hunt for Indian nurses begins: fast track to hire them in Italia

There is a shortage of over 60,000 nurses in Italia. In Europe and even among OECD countries we are among those that have fewer of them and they are needed far more than doctors. Especially now that the new Community Hospitals of the new territorial healthcare system, financed with 2 billion lire from the NRP, are opening, which must also be populated with nurses. This is why the signing between Italy and India - among the dossiers at the centre of the summit in Rome between the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and the Indian Prime Minister Nerandra Modi - of the Declaration of Intent to facilitate the mobility of Indian nurses towards Italia comes at the right time. A journey that began in Ancona two years ago during the G7 meeting when Health Minister Orazio Schillaci announced this project.

The document aims to 'identify some nursing qualifications obtained in India that,' the explanatory report explains, 'present a professional pathway that overlaps with the curricular and professional pathway of nurses according to the Italian system', thus avoiding delays and 'compensatory' fulfilments. In light of these automatically recognised qualifications, the two Indian and Italian ministries undertake to 'identify recruitment procedures that, in the presence of certain professional and linguistic requirements, allow Indian professionals to be directly enrolled in the Order, and therefore to practice the profession'. A fast track, this, which also envisages 'training action plans with an initial part of basic language training provided and certified in India, as well as additional technical and linguistic skills to be provided in Italia'. The joint declaration also envisages the establishment of a Joint Coordination Committee that will have the task of facilitating recruitment procedures.

The agreement with India also stipulates that the exchange of senior and junior professionals between the respective healthcare institutions will be facilitated to 'promote cross-cultural learning and enhance professional skills, contributing to mutual development of healthcare competencies and fostering a collaborative environment'. It also provides for the organisation of joint workshops, seminars and conferences for nurses 'to exchange experiences, address common challenges and explore collaborative solutions, thereby strengthening networking and enhancing professional relationships'. Article 7 also states that every single employment contract between a worker and an employer will be governed by Italian law, including the employment contract. The same Article 7 of the Declaration of Intent between India and Italia also states that nurses will be allowed to transfer their savings into a currency convertible in India