More nationals should be recruited as nurses to overcome staff shortages, a senior health official said yesterday. Sheikh Mohammed bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Director of the Sharjah Medical District, said low pay was the principle reason behind the departure of expatriate nurses. Many left the UAE after receiving better offers from European and American recruiters.

"The percentage of UAE national nurses in our hospitals is very low," Sheikh Mohammed said. "Hence, all local hospitals should move towards emiratisation in the nursing field and should encourage nationals, both male and female, to join the profession. Sheikh Mohammed said his district had sought more nurses from the Ministry of Health. "The Ministry of Health has also contacted the Ministry of Finance and Industry to revise nursing salaries."

Sheikh Mohammed said that due to the strong reputation of UAE medical services, some American and European recruiting agencies had come here and lured nurses with offers of better salaries and benefits. "A large number of nurses have applied at these agencies and those who have passed their interviews have already resigned," Sheikh Mohammed said. Some resignations, however, might be due to other reasons. Some nurses regard their work in the UAE as the first step in their strategy to ultimately settle in other countries, Sheikh Mohammed said.

"Low pay might be another reason for resigning since a married nurse cannot sponsor her spouse and children when her salary is less than Dh3,000. "Some nurses have good qualifications and experience, but they are ranked in different salary categories according to their education, and this might be another reason why some resign." About five per cent of the Asian nurses at Al Qasimi Hospital resigned last year after receiving better offers in Europe and the U.S., a hospital spokesman said.

The spokesman said that the hospital last year had 332 nurses, of whom only 13 were UAE nationals. Fourteen nurses from India, China and the Philippines resigned. "The hospital has taken urgent measures to cope with the shortage of staff. We have increased the working hours, changed the shift hours and stopped giving days off to some of the remaining nurses because we are keen to provide the same high-quality services for patients," the spokesman said.