NMC launches new approach to resolving complaints about nurses and midwives

We’re putting people at the centre of fitness to practise. This week we’ve begun introducing a new approach to resolving complaints about nurses and midwives. Read news piece from NMC here

Health care education funding for postgraduate, dental hygiene and dental therapy students

Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) -
From August 2018 new postgraduate pre-registration nursing, midwifery, allied health professional, and most new dental hygiene and dental therapy students will access loans from the Student Loans Company. New DHSC guidance explains the changes in further detail.
Access the guidance at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/healthcare-education-funding-for-postgraduate-and-dental-students/healthcare-education-funding-for-postgraduate-and-dental-students

Enabling BME nurse and midwife progression into senior leadership positions

This report from NHS England summarises the learning from engagement work, which identifed what the best performing trusts in the workforce race equality standard area were doing, and includes examples that outline best practice approaches and a number of suggested actions to support improvement.

Clinical Nurse Specialist in Early Pregnancy Care

The role of the clinical nurse specialist in early pregnancy care is intended to enhance the care for women who may be concerned about a complication in early pregnancy.

This RCN document outlines the key skills and knowledge required to develop the role of this specialist nurse/midwife and should provide clear direction for commissioners and managers when creating roles to support best practice in local service provision for women and their families.

Professionalism animations to support nurses and midwives

Three animations, produced by the NMC, demonstrate how nurses and midwives could use the Enabling professionalism framework to reflect on practice and challenge poor behaviour.

See also the Enabling professionalism in nursing and midwifery practice guide.

Agency, bank and overtime spending in UK maternity units in 2016

This report, from the RCM, finds that NHS spending on temporary staffing in midwifery reached more than £97 million in 2016. It argues that the current shortage of midwives and pay restraint are contributory factors to the increasing reliance on temporary staffing.

NMC to amend English language requirements for applicants trained outside the UK

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is making alternative options available for nurses and midwives, trained outside the UK, to demonstrate their English language capability.

Safe and effective staffing: nursing against the odds

The Royal College of Nursing has launched the results of a survey of nursing and midwifery staff in the UK.

More than 30,000 responses were received in just two weeks, and clearly describe the impact of poor staffing on patient care and nurses’ wellbeing, says the RCN.

NMC announces radical overhaul of nursing education

The consultation also sets out proposals for a new education framework for nursing and midwifery education. The proposed framework details a range of new outcome focused standards for education institutions and practice placement partners.

The NMC will be hosting online events, Twitter chats and workshops across the four countries of the UK where we will be discussing our plans and listening to views. Get involved and join the conversation on social media using #nurse2030.

The consultation on proposed pre-registration education standards for the future nurse runs from 13 June until 12 September.

See NHS Employers' response

Consultation on standards of proficiency for registered nurses

The NMC's draft standards of proficiency reflect what we think the public will need in the future from the nurses who care for them. They are the minimum standards that a nurse will need to meet to be considered to be capable of safe and effective practice.

The consultation closes on the 12 September

Maternity care must not become further polarised

Bill Kirkup on the storm that has erupted following the royal college decision to withdraw its guidance on promoting normal birth Maternity care must not become further polarised

Last week, the Royal College of Midwives removed its guidance on promoting “normal” birth. That has been followed by an exchange of claims and counter claims in the press and in social media.

Details of clinical placements released

Details have been released by Health Education England (HEE) regarding the arrangements for funding additional clinical placements in nursing, midwifery and allied health pre-registration education.

Information for nurses and midwives on responding to unexpected incidents or emergencies

Following recent terrorist incidents, the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) has provided information for nurses and midwives on responding to unexpected incidents or emergencies.

National maternity and perinatal audit: organisational report 2017

This report finds large increase in midwife-led units co-located with obstetric units, increasing birthplace choice for pregnant women but also describes variation in availability of staff, facilities and services.  The National Maternity and Perinatal Audit (NMPA) is the largest evaluation of NHS maternity and neonatal services undertaken in Britain. It aims to help maternity and neonatal services to identify good practice and areas for improvement in the care of women and babies.

New figures show an increase in numbers of nurses and midwives leaving the professions

New figures from the NMC show an increase in the number of nurses and midwives leaving our register while at the same time, numbers joining have slowed down. This has resulted in an overall reduction in the numbers of nurses and midwives registered to work in the UK.

Send us your compassionate care award entries!

The call has gone out for more entries for this year’s Kate Granger Compassionate Care Awards.

The Chief Nursing Officer for England, Professor Jane Cummings, urged people to nominate colleagues and teams, while also revealing the entry closing date has been extended to 10 July.

Fourth quarter revalidation report demonstrates continued success

Revalidation has recently celebrated its one year anniversary and the NMC has published its fourth quarterly report. The final quarter of the first year has continued to show how successful revalidation has been with 48,598 nurses and midwives renewing their registration during this period.

Enabling professionalism in nursing and midwifery practice

Enabling professionalism in nursing and midwifery practice, from the NMC, is a guide aimed at all nurses and midwives and sets out what ‘professionalism’ can look like in everyday practice.

Updates to the Model Hospital

NHS Improvement has made some changes to the Model Hospital including new compartments, features and a self-registration function for providers.

It's added pathology and doctor productivity to the list of compartments, and refreshed data to the following compartments:

• pharmacy and medicines
• nursing and midwifery
• allied health professionals
• visitor cost recovery

BME representation in fitness to practise cases

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) has published the findings of research exploring the progress and outcomes of BME nurses and midwives going through their fitness to practice (FtP) process.

There were a number of key findings within the report, the most significant being that BME nurses and midwives are more likely to be referred than their white counterparts. The report also highlighted that employers were the largest source of referrals and these referrals were most likely to progress through to the later stages of the FtP process.