Patients Help Crack Nurses' And Midwives' Code, UK

Main Category: Nursing / Midwifery
Article Date: 07 Apr 2008 - 3:00 PDT

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To mark World Health Day, the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) today launches a new Code for the UK's 674,000 nurses and midwives

With events held in Edinburgh, Belfast, Glamorgan and London, the launch of the new Code aims to clarify expectations; setting out for nurses and midwives what is expected of them as professionals, and showing members of the public what standard of care they can expect to receive.

"Practise is continually changing and nurses and midwives are increasingly faced with situations that challenge their accountability," said Nancy Kirkland, NMC President. "Nurses and midwives should see the Code as a support tool to help them in practise so if they are faced with an ethical, moral or professional dilemma, they can refer to the Code for guidance and advice," she said.

As part of the review in 2007, the NMC met with stakeholders from all corners of the UK, including nurses, midwives, employers, members of the public, patient groups, unions and professional bodies. These views have been the primary influence in developing the new Code.

Dee Stanley-Smith, Provider Services Clinical Lead at Derby City PCT who was involved in the consultation process said, "The Code puts into words what it means to be a nurse, spelling out my responsibility to the patient, the service and the profession. It reminds me that I am proud to be a nurse successfully working in an ever-changing world."

A recent NMC online poll of more than 800 nurses and midwives showed that 34 per cent were not confident they knew what was in their Code.

Ms Kirkland added, "Not only are healthcare services continually changing, so too are the needs of patients. Instead of the Code setting out pages of rules, which would be unsuitable considering the varied roles and individual patient needs, the pocket-sized Code provides a broad set of principles that nurses and midwives can apply to their own area of practise and the diverse environments in which patients receive care."

The NMC Code comes into effect on 1 May 2008.

The Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) is the UK regulator for two professions, nursing and midwifery. To be eligible to work as a nurse or midwife in the UK, they must be registered with the NMC. There are currently more than 674,000 nurses and midwives on the register. The primary purpose of the NMC is to safeguard the health and wellbeing of the public. It does this through maintaining a register of all nurses and midwives to practise within the UK and by setting standards for their education, training and conduct.

Nursing & Midwifery Council