NHS hires up to 3,000 foreign doctors in a year to combat lack of UK staff

Exclusive: Guardian investigation finds that aggressive recruitment sees doctors from at least 27 countries hired in 32 of the 160 hospital trusts in England

Up to 3,000 doctors have been hired from overseas by the NHS in the past year, as the service battles to tackle staff shortages that medical professionals say are serious and growing.

They came from at least 27 countries, including India, Poland, Australia and Greece – but also even Iraq, Syria and Sudan – according to 32 of the 160 hospital trusts in England who responded to requests from the Guardian for details of their recruitment.

Related: NHS hiring drive hurts Hungary but India can cope with doctor exodus

The problem is finding permanent staff to recruit. Some hospital finance directors are asking, ‘are there any?'

The NHS doesn’t have the doctors it needs. The shortage is real

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