NMC Launches Consultation For Student Nurses And Midwives, UK

Main Category: Nursing / Midwifery
Article Date: 03 Feb 2009 - 0:00 PDT

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The NMC is consulting with students for the first time, to review its guidance relating to their personal and professional conduct to make sure that it is relevant and contemporary.

The nursing and midwifery regulator has produced a draft guidance document for online consultation and will be holding student discussion groups around the UK. The consultation closes on Monday, 20 April 2009.

In line with other healthcare professionals, the guidance for students of nursing and midwifery is being produced as a result of recommendations in the White Paper, Trust Assurance and Safety - the regulation of health professionals in the 21st Century, to help students instil a clear sense of professional responsibility at an early stage in their careers.

The draft guidance is based on the principles in the NMC Code of professional conduct, performance and ethics for registered nurses and midwives. The draft recommendations for students include:

- making sure that people know that they are receiving care from a student
- knowing that they should only undertake care if they have the done the appropriate training
- not passing off someone else's work as their own.

The guidance has been informed by research on the conduct and values of healthcare professionals including the student guidance available within universities and other regulators. At present, students look to the NMC Code of professional conduct and are guided by their mentors as to how well they are adhering to professional standards and conduct. The idea behind separate guidance issued directly from the regulator is to strengthen links with students so that they can better understand regulation and the role it plays in their future registration and professional career as a nurse or midwife.

The NMC's guidance will ultimately help minimise risk to patients and the public by helping students identify with the standards of professional and personal conduct expected of a nurse or midwife - from the start to the end of their education and training programme and beyond into their career as a member of the professions.

Carmel Lloyd, the NMC's project lead for the student guidance review, said:

"A student is not only learning to develop the skills and knowledge they need to become a registered nurse or midwife but also learning about the conduct and behaviour that patients and the public expect from nurses and midwives. Students who want to become nurses or midwives generally aspire to professional standards, so we hope this guidance helps seal that aspiration for them."

Notes

1. To see the consultation document, Guidance on professional conduct for students, visit http://www.nmc-uk.org. The final guidance is expected to be published in the summer of 2009.

2. 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.

3. In order to become a registered nurse or midwife today, students must adhere to the standards set by the NMC and their university must confirm their eligibility to practice with a statement of 'good health and good character'. Good health means they must be capable of safe and effective practice without supervision and good character is based on a person's conduct, behaviour and attitude as well as any convictions and cautions that might bring the profession into disrepute. Their conduct may affect their ability to complete training and become a registered nurse or midwife.

4. Earlier this month the NMC announced further engagement with students with news that it will be hosting its first student midwives' conference in Edinburgh on 13 March.

Nursing & Midwifery Council

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