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Nurses offered ‘enticing’ life in Saudi Arabia to escape NHS pressures

Staff can apply for posts at a new hospital that promises good money as well as plenty of sunshine and ‘life-enhancing experiences’
Photo of sunny swimming pool in Saudi Arabia, just one of the benefits of a nursing role at a new hospital

Staff can apply for posts at a new hospital that promises good money as well as plenty of sunshine and ‘life-enhancing experiences’

Photo of sunny swimming pool in Saudi Arabia, just one of the benefits of a nursing role at a new hospital
Tired after work? This beats sitting in rush-hour traffic…

UK-trained nurses are being invited to apply to work at a new hospital in Saudi Arabia linked to a London NHS trust, where they can benefit from ‘enticing’ tax-free salaries and sun all year round.

Hundreds of band 5 and 6 nurses are being sought to work overseas at King’s College Hospital Jeddah – a 240-bed hospital site due to open in 2024 – which is affiliated with King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (KCH).

Nurses with a minimum of three years’ experience in various fields, including cardiology, surgical, emergency and paediatrics, are being recruited under the promise of a great work-life balance, coastal lifestyle and a generous, tax-free salary.

A ‘once-in-a-career opportunity’

The new hospital comes at a time when the NHS faces record nursing vacancies and is competing in an international labour market with ‘scarce’ numbers of nurses.

Speaking in a YouTube video advertising the posts, the new hospital’s chief nursing officer Patricia Paine said: ‘We are bringing the best of British healthcare here to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia

‘We can offer you a once-in-a-career opportunity to be part of a new hospital, and we want to attract the very best doctors, nurses, midwives and allied health professionals to be part of this unique team.’

Jeddah is located on the Red Sea coast and has almost 360 days of sunshine a year, with great water sports and snorkelling options, Ms Paine added.

How the KCH Jedda hospital site will look
How the KCH Jedda hospital site will look

‘Living and working in Jeddah has a lot to offer’

Despite concerns raised by Amnesty International over its human rights record, Ms Paine insists the middle-eastern country is a great place to live.

She added: ‘I know it’s tough working in healthcare at the moment, no matter where you live, but I hope that you can see that living and working in Jeddah has a lot to offer, with enticing salaries and life-enhancing experiences.’

‘Growing international market for experienced nurses’

Nurses in the UK are feeling under increasing pressure at work, with tens of thousands of staff vacancies in the NHS and huge demands on all services. Senior visiting fellow at The Health Foundation James Buchan said nurses are likely to seek better opportunities elsewhere.

‘There is a growing international market for well-trained and experienced nurses, and UK nurses are in a good position to help fill that demand,’ he told the Telegraph.

‘With more than 45,000 nursing vacancies in England alone, the NHS is competing in an international labour market for relatively scarce nurses, particularly those with specialist skills and expertise. When competition is fierce, it will be employers who offer the best package of pay, safe staffing and career opportunities who will have the advantage.’

A spokesperson for KCH said: ‘King’s provides clinical governance and assurance to KCH Jeddah and is not directly involved in the operation of the facility or in nurse recruitment. King’s is not encouraging nurses to leave the trust to move overseas.’


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Careers at King’s College Hospital Jeddah


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