NCSBN Partners With Group to Help Prevent Unethical Recruitment of Foreign-Educated Nurses

CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwire - September 4, 2008) - The National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. (NCSBN®) Board of Directors approved the Voluntary Code of Ethical Conduct for the Recruitment of Foreign-Educated Nurses at their July 2008 meeting.

This consensus effort was led by AcademyHealth, a non-partisan, scholarly society for health services researchers, policy analysts and practitioners. A Task Force composed of representatives of unions, health care organizations, educational and licensure bodies, and recruiters joined forces to provide voluntary guidelines that aim to ensure the growing practice of recruiting foreign-educated nurses (FENs) to the U.S. is done in a responsible and transparent manner.

The Code of Conduct provides voluntary guidelines that aim to ensure that the growing practice of recruiting foreign-educated nurses is done in a responsible and ethical manner. It is designed to increase transparency and accountability throughout the process of international recruitment and ensure adequate orientation for FENs. It also provides guidance on ways to ensure recruitment is not harmful to source countries.

NCSBN issued its own position statement on this subject in 2006. The Ethical Recruitment of Nurses for Licensure states that:

      NCSBN respects the right of nurses to determine the country in
      which they choose to work. A thorough decision making process
      by the nurse can only be made with complete information
      concerning the implications of relocation. Any recruitment of
      nurses for the U.S. workforce must be ethical. High ethical
      standards in recruitment are supported by NCSBN. Recruitment
      must not mislead, intimidate or exploit.
      The complete document can be found at
      https://www.ncsbn.org/ethicalrecruitment.pdf

Laura Rhodes, NCSBN President, remarks, "NCSBN believes all nurses have a right to work where they choose and are qualified to do so, regardless of their country of origin. We believe this code will assist nurses in making good decisions about when and where to work."

The Code of Conduct has been endorsed by numerous groups in addition to NCSBN, including the American Nurses Association, the American Association of International Healthcare Recruitment, the National Association for Home Care and Hospice, several large recruiters and multiple associations of internationally educated nurses.

A copy of the Code of Conduct and background study are available at www.fairinternationalrecruitment.org or http://academyhealth.org/international/nurses2006.htm.

Inquiries about the NCSBN Ethical Recruitment of Nurses for Licensure position statement may be directed to Kristin Hellquist, NCSBN director, policy & government relations, at 312.525.3665 or khellquist@ncsbn.org.

The National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. (NCSBN) is a not-for-profit organization whose membership comprises the boards of nursing in the 50 states, the District of Columbia and four U.S. territories.

Mission: The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), composed of Member Boards, provides leadership to advance regulatory excellence for public protection.

National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc.
111 E. Wacker Drive, Suite 2900
Chicago, IL 60601-4277

Contact Information: Contact: Dawn M. Kappel Director, Marketing and Communications 312.525.3667 direct 312.279.1034 fax