Spanish Pharmacists Join West Suffolk Hospital

April 29th, 2003

Two pharmacists from Spain have joined the West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust on two-year contracts. Pau Aceves Baldo and Núria Bech Orriols, both from Barcelona, have been working at Bury St Edmunds’ busy acute hospital for the past month.

Recruiting hospital pharmacists is difficult as the demand for them in Britain exceeds the number of professionals available. To solve the problem, British hospitals have been looking to the Continent to recruit trained staff. Spain has more pharmacists chasing fewer jobs than in the UK, making it a popular choice for recuitment.

Pau and Núria, aged 24 and 26, graduated from the University of Barcelona in 2002. Before moving to Britain, Núria worked as a researcher for the University, while Pau was employed by a pharmaceutical company. They found out about employment for pharmacists in the UK through the British Embassy website.

“Working in Britain is a very interesting opportunity for us,” said Pau.  “After graduation, both Núria and I knew we wanted to work in hospital pharmacy.  In Spain it is much more difficult to find a position in a hospital as there are fewer such posts available.

“The training is much better in Britain. We are able to work in every department of the West Suffolk Hospital, which gives us a lot of valuable experience.  We can see which areas most interest us, and which field is most appropriate for our individual skills.”

To land the posts at the West Suffolk Hospital, Pau and Núria first had to complete an oral and written English exam. They were then interviewed in Madrid by John Anthistle, Head of Pharmacy Services for West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust.

 “I am very pleased that Núria and Pau have joined the pharmacy team, which now has a full complement of staff,” said John Anthistle. “We are one of the few acute Trusts in the UK to have achieved this – many hospitals have several vacancies in their pharmacy department.

“The opening of our new Integrated Care Unit in December, which helps medically stable patients prepare for discharge to their own home, made it especially important that we are fully staffed in pharmacy. Núria and Pau’s arrival will improve the quality of the patient care we provide.”

“We had the choice of working in a number of Trusts throughout the UK, and chose Bury St Edmunds because we had a good rapport with John during our interview and were told that the weather is better in East Anglia,” said Núria.

“All of our colleagues have been friendly and helpful. Joining the West Suffolk Hospital Pharmacy team is a great deal for us and it’s good to be working with a group of gifted professionals. Also, we feel comfortable living in Bury St Edmunds – it is a beautiful town and people have been very kind. We would certainly recommend the move to other pharmacists back home in Spain.”