Nigerian doctors who have been recruited to work in the United Kingdom say they are being exploited and overworked.

Doctors who are mainly from Africa are being recruited to work for private hospitals under conditions that most doctors aren't subjected to.

A doctor who worked at Nuffield Health Leeds Hospital in England in 2021 said he was approached by a private company named NES Healthcare.

The company specialises in employing doctors from overseas, and he was offered visa sponsorship and a potential job.

The company hires African doctors, mostly Nigerians, and uses them as Resident Medical Officers, also known as live-in doctors mainly found in the private sector.

Dr Augustine Enekwechi told the BBC that he was so excited about the opportunity that he did not read the employment contract he was given.

The contract opted him out of legislation that protects UK workers from long working hours.

Enekwechi said there were times where he would not be able to leave the hospital grounds for an entire week.

The young doctor said the working hours were extreme and he was often on call 24 hours a day for a week at a time.

"The tiredness was so intense, there were times I was worried I couldn't properly function," he said.

"Working there felt like a prison."

He added that on top of the tiredness, he began to stress about his patients' safety as working with fatigue puts them at risk.

"I felt powerless, helpless, you know, constant stress and thinking something could go wrong."

A report by the British Medical Association and the front line lobbying group Doctors' Association has found that 92% of "Resident Medical Officers" had been recruited from Africa with 81% of those from Nigeria.

The report says the majority of the doctors complained of excessive working hours and unfair salary deductions.

Nuffield Health denied the allegations and said their doctors are offered regular breaks, time off between shifts, and the ability to swap shifts if needed.