France. Learning to drive. A night out in Dundee.
All of these things are on Solomon Oteng’s to-do list. The first he’s nervous about because he doesn’t speak French, but he loves the sound of the country so much that he doesn’t mind where in France he visits.
The second he can’t wait for either. It will mean freedom and not having to rely on buses and lifts to take him from his home in Perth to work in Pitlochry. Being from Ghana, though, he has to wait for paperwork and so that he can get his driver’s licence.
The third will be happening soon, now that two of his Ghanian friends have joined him in Scotland.
Solomon, 32, made Scotland home this year when he was recruited to Balhousie Pitlochry care home as a nurse. He was prepared for working with older people; he worked with the elderly in Ghana, although his job there was in a hospital setting. He wasn’t prepared for just how much he would love Scotland, in particular Pitlochry. “It’s cold but it’s very beautiful. And the people in Pitlochry and in Scotland generally are so friendly,” he says. So much so that he recommended friends Eric Kakunaang and Salim Ahmed to up sticks and move too.
The pals were reunited this week at Edinburgh Airport where Eric and Saleem were met by not just representatives from Balhousie Care Group but also a reporter from STV, who wanted to capture the reunion and their arrival on camera.
The friends are part of Balhousie’s overseas nursing recruitment strategy which has seen the award-winning care provider turn to countries like Africa and India to help them fill vacancies. The shortage of nurses has been well documented across the health sector, from the NHS to private firms. Balhousie stands out because of the extra lengths it goes to, says Jordan Russell, Resourcing Manager at the Perth-based company.
“We literally go the extra mile at Balhousie. I and a colleague drove to Edinburgh to meet Eric and Saleem, and took Solomon with us. It was a special moment as Solomon trained with them, has known them for more than a decade, and recommended them for jobs with us. Usually we use an agency for our overseas nurses, but this time we did it ourselves. That included everything from booking the flights to finding them accommodation in Dundee.” Jordan, who lives in Dundee, where Erik and Saleem will be based, found them a flat through a friend’s letting firm. He made up the beds and bought them some grocery staples himself, as well as taking them to buy jackets and gloves to see them through their first Scottish winter.
A new member of staff, Recruitment Administrator Kirsten Roper, was added to Balhousie’s People Services team who deals almost solely with overseas candidates – such is the demand for nurses throughout the group’s 26 homes across six regions of Scotland.
It’s a win-win; Solomon says that working in Scotland means an increase in pay, a contracted number of hours (which is not always the case in Ghana) and career advancement. “I also get to see the world,” he says, adding that his flight here was the first time he had been on a plane.
What does he love most about working Highland Perthshire? “It’s beautiful – so clean and so green. And through my work at Balhousie Pitlochry I get to understand the ageing process and how to deal with age- associated challenges.”
And his least favourite thing? “Going to work on Sundays! I work nights and get a bus to work if I can’t get a lift. Several times the bus has been cancelled on a Saturday evening and doesn’t run on a Sunday so I sometimes have to sleep over in the afternoon and continue with my duties till Monday morning before I can get the bus home.”
He has only good things to say about this settling in period and has this to say to other overseas recruits: “It is a natural feeling to be nervous and because of the fear of the unknown. But I was certain everything would be fine because I read a lot about the Scottish people. They are the most honest and friendly I have ever worked with and always willing to help.”
That said, he misses his friends and some of the dishes he isn’t able to prepare here. He is looking forward to getting over to Ghana sometime next year – as well as that trip to France, of course.
Want to join Solomon as part of the Balhousie Care team? Email us: careers@balhousiecare.co.uk or view our vacancies here.
From left to right: Saleem, Solomon and Eric are reunited at Edinburgh Airport.
