To celebrate the 75th anniversary of the NHS, the Migration Museum is launching a national touring exhibition: Heart of the Nation: Migration and the Making of the NHS.

The NHS has always relied upon an international workforce – since its inception in 1948, staff shortages have been resolved by “importing” doctors, nurses and auxiliary staff from overseas.  Today, around 1 in 6 of its employees has a non-British nationality, and many more are the descendants of previous generations of migrants. The exhibition aims to shine a light on this under-appreciated aspect of British history.

Heart of the Nation features photography, film, artworks, historical artifacts and oral histories from people who have traveled from all over the world to work in the NHS. The centerpiece is a newly commissioned installation,  co-created and performed by seven current healthcare workers,  which uses story and music to explore the theme of care.  As part of an ongoing participatory project, viewers will be invited to share their own experiences of the NHS and the workers who have cared for them throughout their lives.

“For all its challenges, the NHS remains an immense source of national pride and is often painted as a distinctly British success story. Yet the NHS simply wouldn’t exist without the generations of people from all over the world who have built, grown and staffed it,” said Aditi Anand, Artistic Director at the Migration Museum and curator of the exhibition, who curated the exhibition.

“Heart of the Nation highlights the vital role that migrants have always played in the NHS and the extent to which, just like the NHS, migration is central to the very fabric of who we are in Britain – as individuals, as communities and as a nation,” she continued “Now more than ever, this is a story that needs to be told.”

Dr Adil Akram, a psychiatrist working in the NHS who is one of the co-creators of the installation, said: “My father came over from Pakistan in the 1960s to practise as a doctor in the NHS – and I’ve followed in his footsteps. This exhibition is close to my heart – it’s about the contributions of people like my father who came to this country and spent their lives and careers helping to build the NHS into the fantastic institution it is today, that symbolises all the good things about the UK.” 

At a time when the NHS is under increasing strain, and anti-migrant sentiments are riding high in politics and the media, the exhibition could not be more timely. It will be running at Leicester Museum & Art Gallery until 29 October 2023. This is the first leg of a national tour, which will include Leeds and London, and it’s also possible to explore the exhibition online. 

Visit the gallery above for a closer look at some of the imagery on display.