St Vincent's University Hospital Jobs, Pay & Permits

St Vincent's University Hospital (SVUH) is an academic teaching hospital at Elm Park, Donnybrook, in south east Dublin. It was founded in 1834 by the Religious Sisters of Charity at St Stephen's Green, opened in April 1835 with 12 beds, and moved entirely to Elm Park in 1970.

It is a principal teaching hospital of University College Dublin and part of St Vincent's Healthcare Group, with St Vincent's Private Hospital and St Michael's Hospital, Dún Laoghaire.

SVUH provides acute, chronic and emergency care across more than 50 medical specialties. Its emergency department is the major trauma centre for the South East Dublin region, serving a population of over 300,000 with over 71,000 emergency attendances a year. The HSE counted 546 acute inpatient beds at SVUH at the end of December 2025.

The hospital was first accredited by Joint Commission International (JCI) in 2010 and says it is the only publicly funded academic medical centre in Ireland with that accreditation. It hosts national services including the National Centre for Cystic Fibrosis, the National Liver Transplant Programme and the National Pancreas Transplant Programme.

SVUH is in the HSE Dublin and South East health region and pays on the HSE consolidated salary scales. Internationally trained doctors, nurses and other health professionals apply to its advertised vacancies; the international recruitment it has publicised was of nurses, welcomed from the Philippines and India in March 2023.

Founded

1834 (founded by the Religious Sisters of Charity)

Run by

St Vincent's Healthcare Group

Leadership

• Ann Flynn, Director of Nursing

Accreditations

• Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation, first awarded in 2010 and reassessed every three years

Switchboard

(01) 221 4000

• Liver transplantation

  Home of the National Liver Transplant Programme; the first liver transplant took place here in 1993 and the 1,000th in 2016.

• Pancreas transplantation

  Hosts the National Pancreas Transplant Programme.

• Cystic fibrosis

  Home of the National Centre for Cystic Fibrosis.

• Emergency medicine and major trauma

  The major trauma centre and stroke referral centre for the South East Dublin region, with a consultant-led 24/7 service for adults.

• Cancer care

  SVUH lists the National Cancer Control Programme among the national services it is home to, and has a Daffodil Centre for patients and families.

• Acute medicine

  An Acute Medical Unit opened in 2013, alongside general medical specialties across the campus.

• Genomic medicine and research

  Translational research with UCD and Genomic Medicine Ireland, and education and research laboratories on the Elm Park campus.

• SVUH has recruited nurses from abroad. A March 2023 news item on its website welcomed new nurses who had travelled from the Philippines and India, described support from the hospital's education team on arrival, and said the hospital also welcomes nurses' partners. It invited interested nurses to apply through its careers site.
• The hospital's own careers pages do not publish a relocation package or amounts. Treat figures quoted by third-party agencies with care and ask SVUH HR in writing what support comes with your offer.
• Vacancies are listed on the SVUH careers portal (svuh.numla.com, linked from stvincents.ie/careers) by staff category, and on stvincents.ie by department. SVUH says it does not accept paper applications or CVs sent by email or post; you must apply through the advertised vacancy. HR Business Services can be reached at [email protected].
• The Nursing Department runs a Nurse Education Centre at Elm Park and has trained nurses since 1834. The HSE says many international nurses and health and social care professionals are recruited through a small number of employment agencies that manage the full recruitment process on its behalf, and that you can also apply directly to any advertised post you are qualified for.

• Registration with the Irish regulator for your profession before you practise: the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) for nurses and midwives, the Irish Medical Council (IMC) for doctors, CORU for professions such as physiotherapy, radiography and medical science, and the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI) for pharmacists. Qualifications gained outside the EU are assessed first, and NMBI or CORU may set a compensation measure such as an aptitude test or a period of adaptation.

• Doctors apply to the IMC in the division that fits the post. The IMC says doctors seeking the General or Trainee Specialist Division may be required to sit the Pre-Registration Examination System (PRES), and that a pass in the UK PLAB 2 can exempt you. The IMC also points to registration in the Supervised Division as another route; check its eligibility chart for the division that fits your post.

• English: NMBI asks for IELTS Academic overall 7.0 (7.0 in three components and 6.5 in one) or OET with B in three components and C+ in one, from a single sitting less than two years old. The IMC, CORU and PSI set their own tests and scores.

• An employment permit if you are not an EEA, UK or Swiss citizen. The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (DETE) issues the Critical Skills Employment Permit for occupations on its Critical Skills list, including doctors, nurses and midwives. It needs a two-year job offer; for public sector roles covered by a pay agreement the salary is the agreed rate; nurses and midwives need a qualification NMBI accepts. The fee is €1,000, with 90% refunded if refused, and DETE asks for applications at least 12 weeks before the start date.

• Non-consultant hospital doctors (NCHDs) may instead hold a two-year Multi-Site General Employment Permit, which Irish Immigration Service Delivery links to Stamp 1H and describes as carrying similar benefits to a Critical Skills permit.

• Pre-employment checks: the HSE recruitment process includes screening, interview, Garda vetting, recognition of qualifications and an occupational health check before a formal offer. If you need an entry visa, you apply after the permit is granted, and you register your immigration permission once you arrive.

1. 1

   Start your registration

   Apply to NMBI, the IMC, CORU or the PSI. A staff nurse post needs NMBI registration; one nurse featured by SVUH worked as a healthcare assistant while her NMBI application was processed.
2. 2

   Find a vacancy

   Use the SVUH careers portal linked from stvincents.ie/careers, which lists jobs by category: nursing, NCHDs and consultants, health and social care professionals, management and administration, patient and client care, and general support.
3. 3

   Apply through the advert

   Apply online through the vacancy itself. SVUH does not accept paper applications or CVs by email or post.
4. 4

   Interview and checks

   Shortlisted candidates are interviewed. Expect references, Garda vetting, occupational health clearance and registration checks before an offer.
5. 5

   Permit, visa and arrival

   With a two-year offer, apply to DETE for a Critical Skills Employment Permit at least 12 weeks before your start date, then for an entry visa if needed, and register your immigration permission after you arrive.