Swine flu staff to have fees paid

About 9,500 nurses and midwives in Scotland are eligible to re-register

Former nurses and midwives who return to work to help combat the swine flu outbreak will have their fees paid, the Scottish government has said.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council has already written to former members whose registration has lapsed in the last four years, urging them to renew.

There are approximately 9,500 nurses and midwives across Scotland who could come forward and re-register if needed.

The registration fee involved is £76, and £23 for a disclosure check.

The move is designed to help nurses and midwives work if additional medical staff are required in the event of a surge in cases of the H1N1 virus.

Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon pledged the government would "meet any costs that re-registering will incur".

Ms Sturgeon said: "We are continuing to work closely with boards and other organisations to ensure Scotland is prepared for any NHS staffing implications as a result of the pandemic.

"The extra resource former nurses and midwives can provide if the pandemic worsens will be vital and that is why we are offering to meet any costs that re-registering will incur."

Ms Sturgeon also said critical care capacity is being increased, with £1.4m invested in purchasing 40 additional adult ventilators and 15 paediatric ventilators.

Nicola Sturgeon also announced more ventilators would be made available

In addition to this eight further neo-natal ventilators and three more adult ventilators have been acquired.

The first four new ventilators are expected to arrive within the next few weeks, with the remaining ones likely to be delivered by the end of November.

The health secretary said: "Critical care capacity is not just an issue of available beds or cots. It requires, among other things, consideration of necessary equipment, such as these ventilators.

"Even if H1N1 continues to be a relatively mild virus for most people affected, its effects on the health service and on the wider community could be highly disruptive.

"That is why we continue to press ahead with our plans for responding to the virus and the impact of seasonal flu."

And she stressed: "We are already in a strong position to cope with the peak in cases expected over autumn and winter and we must remember in the vast majority of H1N1 cases, most people have fairly mild symptoms and make a full recovery within a week."