NURSES are being fast-tracked through immigration to meet a shortfall at Colchester General Hospital.

Fifteen nurses are currently having their visa applications speeded up so they can start work as soon as possible.

Colchester Hospital University NHS Foundation Trust has had to recruit 80 new nurses, all from the Philippines, with 15 expected to arrive in November.

The trust says it may have to travel back to south east Asia before Christmas to recruit even more qualified staff.

In July there were 87 nursing vacancies and now the trust estimates it needs to recruit 137 people to fill posts on its expanding wards.

The biggest gaps are in specialist medicine, a report to the hospital trust’s board of directors said.

The problem has been partly put down to a national shortfall of qualified nursing staff. However, Julie Firth, director of nursing and patient experience, said the situation was improving.

She said: “We have 80 more nurses than we had last September. The vacancies are where the new beds are coming on stream.

“Nationally the Philippines is the area the Government has allowed us to recruit from.

“They have done it in London and the nurses settled in well and have proved to be a reliable workforce.”

The Nursing Times recently highlighted Colchester as one of ten hospitals with high death rates and low nursing numbers, but Ms Firth denied the shortage was having an impact on patient care and said: “If you walk around the wards and ask the nurses how it feels to them, the sisters would say things are much better than they have been.”

Peter Murphy, the trust’s chief executive, said: “There is a lot of work going on to get the numbers in place.

“It has been a real challenge which is continuing, but I think we are doing well for a district hospital of our scale to be able to expand and recruit to these levels.”

The hospital is also working with its human resources department to shorten nursing appointments by stockpiling candidates ready for when vacancies occur. Recruitment drives have led to the trust employing 30 newly-qualified nurses to help reduce the shortfall.