PersonneI Movement Within PL

Suzy Preeman moved to Melbourne and an old school friend of hers Karen Misstear |oined us here in Dun
Laoghaire. |t was a seamless transition as when Suzy took over from another friend of hers Helene Giacom-
etti who moved to London.
Karen was thrown in at deep end as we started organising interviews for UK Lmployers in 1urys and deal-
ing with volumes of paperwork.
Sylwia Markievz took over in Porto in April and has done tro|an work organising interviews for UK
Lmployers in Lisbon and Porto. Zoltan Golyak moved from Hungary to Toronto. Catia Podrigues who is a
PGN will begin in our Porto office in early 1an 20l0.
Creen Shoots of Recovery
y Danny FinanciaI ControIIer
|n between a hectic schedule of presentations in |reland and Lurope Lileen and | managed a more sedate
day in Athlone on the 2nd October where we were exhibiting at the |rish Association of Directors of Nurs-
ing and Midwifery.
Por a change this didn't require too early a start or finish and it was a very fruitful day where we were able
to catch up with a number of old friends. |nterestingly we were the only agency exhibiting this year, which
is probably a reflection of the times in a year where nursing recruitment activity in |reland has been
considerably down on previous years. However, we are acutely aware of the fickle nature of recruitment
markets in the profession and were confident that at some stage the current cycle will change. One Direc-
tor of Nursing we met confided that she felt that to some extent the sector had lost contact with recruiters
and that was not necessarily a good thing once markets changed.
Olli Pekka
Sylwia Markiewicz
The overriding consensus was that some shoots of recovery may be evident from 1anuary 20l0
onwards but that naturally the whole situation remained somewhat tentative. we have actually already
noticed a marked improvement in demand over recent weeks in |reland albeit from a very low base
and hope that these are the first encouraging signs underway.
The format of the event itself was interesting in that presentations to attendees were interspersed with
coffee breaks in the exhibition hall where we were able to catch up with delegates. Other exhibitors
included medical supplies companies together with financial services and industry bodies.
One issue that is ever pervasive is the fact that whatever the short term budgetary expedients the
nature of the ageing baby-boomers means that health care demand will remain strong into the
medium and long term. The nature of supplying that demand may include a more flexible provision of
staffing into the future but as soon as the public sector starts to recruit again even on a contract basis
there are likely to be shortages once more. Lspecially as large cohorts of internationally educated
nurses and newly qualified |rish nurses have already left our shores.
Anyway, one of the first people we bumped into upon arrival was Kay 8eggan, director of Psychiatric
services at Clonskeagh. Kay was in particular demand that day as this event coincided with one similar
in relation to the Psychiatric Nurses Association. Director of Nursing at the National Maternity Hospital,
Mary 8rosnan, gave us insight into the current position with respect to midwifery recruitment. Another
interesting conversant during the afternoon was Chris Hewitt who is involved with nursing education
at the Poyal victoria Lye and Lar hospital in Dublin. The whole issue of nursing education is of course of
great interest to us especially in the context of our position as international nurse recruiters. Special
guest of the day was the Minister of Health Mary Harney.
The conference was extremely worthwhile and we were very pleased to support the association. we
look forward to attending again in the future.
Green Shoots of Pecovery contd..
Danny - Pinancial Controller
Lileen O'Malley in Porto office
1ury's Hotel, Dublin
A New Adventure - FinIand
Pinland was a new location for 8est Personnel. 8PL had sourced nurses from Pinland in the past and
traditionally had found a supply of very good quality international candidates who had completed their
education in Pinland. Ollie Pekka, our newly appointed Pinnish representative, has further increased our
work in Pinland. 1ust in the previous month we had placed a very experienced Pinnish theatre nurse in
one of the main private hospitals in Dublin.
Anyway, this trip was to involve a lot of travelling especially in getting over to the country. |t was to be a
very early start as we were booked onto red eye flight to Piga in Latvia where we arrived at around ten in
the morning. Our flight to Tempere in Pinland was not until the early evening so we had the opportunity
to pass a good part of the day in Piga. On arrival we took a taxi ride from the airport to the city centre by
the crossing of the river Daugava .Pirst of all we had something to eat and found a picturesque little place
that served fine fayre, reasonably priced, at the entrance to an attractive cobbled square. Afterwards there
was a stroll looking at the displays of the local artists. Later on we visited the museum dedicated to the
plight of the Latvian people during the Stalinist era which was highly poignant. The city has a nice archi-
tectural culture in the 1ugenstil style or German Art nouveau.|t would be fair to say that our favourite
location was perhaps the 8alck Magic Cafe set in the style of an l8th century apothecary and featuring
staff in traditional dress whilst also serving quite delicious chocolate and ice cream. we got so settled in
fact that we only |ust made our flight out, being ignorant of the delays to be expected in Piga when
returning to the airport through busy rush hour traffic.
7he ReaI Work egins
So it was another flight onto Tampere and then a long taxi ride from the small airport inland to our
ultimate location in Turku. The exhibition in association with the local university started promptly at
l0am.Lverything proceeded smoothly and once | was able to sort out one or two minor glitches associ-
ated with the DvD it was quite plain sailing. There was a steady candidate flow throughout the day
though much of my time was taken up interviewing dental candidates on behalf of one of our UK dental
corporate clients.
One novel twist however was the public question and answer session broadcast through the exhibition
where | was able to tell the story of 8est Personnel and its aims and ob|ectives for medical recruitment in
Pinland to a large audience.
8lack Magic Cafe Question & Answer session Finland Picturesque Finland
we see the market in two ways, both as a source of nurses and dentists and also as a possible source
market from other parts of Lurope. |ndeed we did discuss this latter prospect with employers and
considered in depth the Pinnish Language requirements in their marketplace. |n terms of linguistic
groupings Pinnish most closely resembles Hungarian. | thought this was interesting as not only had
we the help of Ollie being Pinnish, but we had also in recent times appointed Zoltan Golyak a former
LUPLS adviser in Hungary to help our work in Canada from his new base in Toronto.
The following morning we interviewed a new graduating Kenyan Nurse studying in Pinland and were
again impressed by the standard. Overall our impression of clinical standards and training in the
country was excellent which combined with the outstanding Lnglish language levels make it very
attractive to us.
what was fascinating for us was the outstanding general level of health care provision and especially
the generally robust health condition of their more elderly inhabitants. A survey was released whilst
we were there, reported in the national press, that Pinland had one of the highest per capita incomes
in the world and that this was well reflected in the health of their people.
Our return |ourney for the flight home to Tampere was by train and gave us the opportunity the view
beautiful forested land with sparse population densities. Pinland is a beautiful, well maintained coun-
try and one we see a lot of possibility for candidates and recruiters alike. we will be back!
What is it Iike to work in another country!
Por this newsletter we are going to focus in on our candidate's experiences in a foreign country. A few
of our candidates have helpfully written about their new lives and work placements. See for yourself
what to expect!
7omi Ahonen - Finnish Nurse in IreIand:
Pirst of all | want to thank 8est Personnel for helping me move to |reland from Pinland last April. Prom
the first call, to my first |rish interview, to ultimately helping me secure a |ob in Dublin. The 8est
Personnel team was efficient, hardworking, friendly and helpful every step of the way.
| have been in Dublin for 8months and what an 8months it has been! Prom learning how to use the
public transport system, to getting used to the constant rain, always have your umbrella with you!
And not to mention the Dublin accent which took me ages to understand, it has all been a fun adven-
ture. |reland is quite similar to Pinland - the people are friendly and always up for some fun, and as
the |rish say 'up for some craic'. Like back home it's bright during the summer and dark early during
the winter, but the cold is a different cold compared to Pinland. Something | will miss this winter is
definitely the snow!
Pinland in Snow
The Potunda Hospital, Dublin
working in an |rish hospital has felt different to what | was used to in Pinland. 8ut maybe it's |ust a
combination of communicating in a foreign language all the time, getting to learn your new colleagues
and adapt a new way of living. However | worked hard and took on each challenge and now en|oy
working in the |rish Health Care System. And in the end | really can't point out specific areas that are so
much more different then back home.
Since | moved from Helsinki, | have been living in an apartment in Clontarf, which is by the sea with
three other people. Accommodation is very nice in |reland and is very modern. |n Pinland once you
leave college you either move into your own apartment or live alone or with your partner. | found it
totally different to move in with three other people and get used to living with them, it almost feels like
college all over again, but in a much more grown up kind of way. | also find rent in |reland more expen-
sive than in Pinland.
Since | came to Dublin, | have visited Donegal and 8elfast and have also explored the Dublin areas
including Howth and Kildare. | can't wait to explore more of |reland, | love the wide open space and the
beautiful scenery which reminds me a lot of home. And | |ust love the small villages that seem to be lost
in time, and that nothing has changed for many years. Pood comes with the culture, and | must say |
was surprised that people seem to eat lots of potatoes, |ust like home. Something that we don't have
back home in the way that you find here is the bar food culture. Something that | have a hard time
finding in Pinland but is everywhere here is cheddar cheese. 8ut overall the food is much like the food
in Pinland.
So far it has been a great adventure and | hope to stay in |reland for the future and explore |rish culture
even more!
1ose Serrano - Spanish Pharmacist in IreIand
| am a Spanish pharmacist who decided to move to |reland to improve my career. | came to Dublin first
in August 2008 with my family |ust for holidays. | really liked the country and | thought it would be a
nice place to live in. | got some information about the lifestyle, work etc... and after thinking about it |
and family decided to move here.
At the beginning things weren`t so easy, however |rish people are very friendly and very helpful.The
first thing | had to do was to be registered at PS| (Pharmaceutical Society of |reland). That took me
around six months. Meanwhile | was studying Lnglish. when finally | was registered | started to look for
a |ob through agencies. | went personally to hand my C.v. and | sent hundreds of C.vs to the different
offers | found on the internet. 8est Pecruit helped me a lot. They arranged some interviews for me and
one of them was successful. | got a |ob.
we moved to a town in the middle of |reland (a beautiful place in the countryside) and | started to
work in a pharmacy.|'ve been working here for 3 months now and | am really happy. The |ob a phar-
macist does here is different to Spain, so |'m learning new duties which are very rewarding. | also
work with people from different countries such Poland, Prance...which lets me learn from other
cultures and ways of working at the same time.| work 3 or 4 days a week and sometimes we use to
visit different places in |reland such as Cork or Tralee.
My family are very happy here as well because the life is very quiet.
People are very nice and we feel really well here. | encourage pharmacists to come to live and work to
|reland.
Aoife CaIIagher - Recent Irish Nursing Crad in ngIand:
Like a lot of people, | ended up working in Lngland simply because | could not find work in |reland. |
was also attracted to Lngland because it is so near to home while having vast employment
opportunities. |f you work outside London, accommodation is cheaper than |reland and the general
cost of living is very affordable. 8ut, as my placement was in a hospital in London | found
accommodation in London. | was advised to look for accommodation on
http://www.spareroom.co.uk/ and www.Primelocation.com. | found that the rents were quite high for
two bedroom apartments so eventually decided on a lovely four roomed victorian house in
Clapham, South London. The other people in the house are all working professionals, two girls from
Australia and a boy from |reland. There are two main bathrooms upstairs and the living area is very
spacious. | was immediately drawn to the area as it is very young, lots of local bars and shops with
easy access to the Tube's Northern Line which brings me directly into work in the city centre, only a
20minute |ourney. | pay 600 rent a month, this includes council tax and utilities.
8ecause of Clapham's prime location | save a lot of money on Taxis and general recreation. The area is
always buzzing with activity on a Priday evening and a lot of people | work with choose to come to
Clapham for food and drinks. The Northern line also brings you directly into Pegent Street which is
also great for night life and shopping, when you can afford it! Clapham itself is very multi cultural and
there is a lot in the way of food choice. | myself shop at Tesco but there are halal shops as well as
ethnic food sections in Sainsburys. Clapham Common is at the centre of Clapham and is a huge park
where a lot of events take place. Myself and two friends have signed up for military fitness classes on
the Common. This is a great way to keep fit and again meet new people. During the summer there
are a few festivals on the Common and every Sunday there is a farmers market. |t is also a great place
|ust for a stroll when the city becomes a bit claustrophobic!
Oxford Street, London
| have been very lucky with the people | have met in London. |n my hospital everyone is from a
different part of the world and interested to meet new friends. |n my house | am also fortunate that my
house mates have included me in their socializing. | would advise anyone who is thinking of moving to
London to try and get accommodation with a few people, rather than living on your own, and obvi-
ously to get a |ob before you get here!
London is expensive but areas like Clapham cater for people on a budget and also have more of a small
town feel to them then living in busy central London. The transport system is one of the most reliable in
the world. Trains in the morning come l minute apart and if there are any problems with trains the
transport authorities always provide replacement bus services. 8e warned however, the tube is over-
crowded all year round and extremely hot in the summer!
The Lnglish people | have met in London are very like |rish people - humorous, hard working and open.
8ecause there are so many cultures in London you cannot really sum up the culture of
Londoners. 8e prepared for a fast pace of life where everyone works hard and plays even harder!
| am extremely grateful to Lileen in 8est Personnel who set up interviews for me immediately after | got
registered with the NMC. Out of three interviews | got three offers in Lngland. | chose the London
placement as | am in my early twenties and wanted to experience the young city life - thankfully | made
the right decision!
Rocio Fedriani - Spanish pharmacist in IreIand
when | originally decided to come to |reland, it was only supposed to be for a few months. That was
back in 2006. | wanted to learn a new language and experience a different culture to my own. | was
always a bit of a home-bird, so it was very scary for me to leave Spain and come to a country where |
knew nobody and couldn't speak the language too well. |t turns out that it was by far the best decision |
have ever made!
| found work as a researcher in a University, which was great. | worked with people from all over the
world and made some long-lasting friendships. |rish people are extremely welcoming and friendly, it
made learning the language a fantastic experience. | realised that | had fallen in love with the country
and that | wanted to stay here long-term. |n order to do this, | needed to find a stable permanent |ob,
which, in a recession, is not an easy thing to do. Luckily, | got help from the people at 8est Personnel.
Through them, | was recently able to find my current |ob and as a result, make my wishes come true.
Hospital ward
My experience here is not what | thought it would be at all, it has exceeded my expectations! |reland is
a great place to experience and | would highly recommend it to anyone who is thinking of coming.
sther Wambui - kenyan Nurse in IreIand
| came to |reland in 2005. | got my registration and |ob while | was still living and working in Pinland
where | studied for my Nursing degree. 8ut |'m originally from Kenya. My first |ob in |reland was in a
Private Home which was great, but | preferred working in Hospitals. | got my second |ob through 8est
Personnel Agency in May 2006 at Cappagh Orthopaedic hospital, where | still work up to date.
The first time | came to |reland for the |ob interview | was most impressed by the |rish people who |
found very warm and friendly. After moving to |reland | got accommodation easily via daft website,
www.daft.ie. | found the rent a bit expensive, especially on the south-side of Dublin where | lived at
that time.| later moved to North Dublin where | find rent more reasonable and nearer my work place.
My working experience has been very good especially at Cappagh Hospital where fellow staffs are
very helpful and friendly. | find the pay rates in |reland better than other countries | ever worked. The
working hours are good also and you can choose the shifts you prefer. | especially find working long
shifts (07.40-20.30) better for me as you only work 3days a week and have 4 days off. The living cost in
general is quite affordable.
Settling in |reland was easy for me as | had a friend who showed me around and guided me on how to
register myself into the country and most importantly where to shop. Coming from a warm country |
found it cold here but compared to Pinland |reland was obviously warmer. 8ut | always make sure |
have an umbrella in my handbag always (1ust incase). |reland has been an exciting country for me,
getting to know the |rish culture, different |rish accents that still excite me even today.
All in all |'m happy to be working and living in |reland. |t is a great country and people are |ust lovely.
Pegistered Nurse