Niagara Falls (N.Y.) Memorial Medical Center is using its new international nursing program to fill staffing gaps.
The program includes adopting a U.S./Canadian recruitment pipeline and partnering with Global Healthcare Resources, according to a March 7 news release. Global Healthcare Resources helps healthcare organizations with international recruitment and placement, including the credentialing and immigration process for nurses.
Through these efforts, the hospital has been able to attract more than 20 registered nurses from Canada, the Philippines and India.
"Across the country, hospitals and health systems have struggled to fill open nursing positions as professionals retire or leave the field at a rate faster than new nurses are being licensed," Joseph Ruffolo, CEO of Niagara Falls Memorial, said in the news release.
"For this reason, we are pleased with our international nursing program’s role in improving recruitment efforts as the healthcare industry continues to face critical staffing issues," Mr. Ruffolo added. "Thanks to our proximity to the Canadian border and our partnership with a dedicated healthcare staffing company in GHR, Memorial has expanded its recruitment focus while introducing fully-certificated, experienced nurses to continue providing excellent patient care."
Mr. Ruffolo told The Buffalo News the 171-bed Niagara Falls Memorial has hired 13 nurses from Canada who already are currently employed and working and is working on hiring another 14 from Canada, the Philippines and India.