The 2022 annual registration renewal window opens on Monday, 25 October 2021 and will be open until Monday, 31 January 2022.

All nurses and midwives practising in Ireland are required to have their name on the Register of Nurses and Midwives which is maintained by NMBI and each year it is necessary to pay the annual renewal to maintain your registration. 

For the second year, the annual renew process will be done through our online portal MyNMBI. The portal is aimed at making the process more streamlined and easier for registrants.

We are aware that last year some registrants experienced difficulties in engaging with the new MyNMBI system so as part of our commitment to improve the experience, we have streamlined the process and this year the application will be mobile enabled. To assist you a step-by-step guide on the renewal process and a video outlining the steps to take will be made available ahead of the renewal window.

Please note that we no longer accept renewal payments by phone.

The annual retention date remains at 31 December 2021 and you can renew online from 25 October 2021 up to 31 January 2022, allowing nurses and midwives more time to register.

Notices will be issued by email to inform all registrants in advance and will contain detailed instructions on how to renew.

We would remind all registrants that they cannot begin the renewal process itself until the renewal window opens on 25 October.

We would however encourage registrants to login once you receive your notice in order to check your account, ensure you have access and ensure your personal details are up to date prior to registration renewal. When logging in, please do not create a new account or you will not be able to access your details.

Further updates on the 2022 annual renewal process will be available on our website.

The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) in partnership with the Office of Nursing and Midwifery Service Director (ONMSD) will attend The Irish Times Higher Options online education expo on Wednesday, 13 and Thursday, 14 October 2021.

The event provides second level students with information on choosing further and higher-level courses.

NMBI's attendance at Higher Options is part of the support and guidance we provide for nursing and midwifery. We aim to deliver easy access to career information, including information on education and training.

Higher Options will, for the second year, be held online and if you know of anyone interested in a nursing and midwifery career, they can register for the event and visit the NMBI stand on the Higher Options website.

NMBI is inviting members of the public to apply to join a number of our committees. If you know anyone with an interest in regulation in the health sector, please share this link as we would like to hear from them.

We are calling for applications from public interest representatives for the following committees:

•        Midwives Committee

•        Audit and Risk Committee

•        Preliminary Proceedings Committee

Public interest applicants must not be, and never have been, registered as a nurse or as a midwife in this, or in any jurisdiction.

We will create a panel of shortlisted applicants to fill vacancies on these committees between October 2021 and March 2022.

Details of these vacancies and how to apply are on our website.

The closing date for applications is Wednesday, 6 October 2021 at 12 noon.

The Midwives Committee advises the Board in relation to all areas relating to midwifery practice.

The Audit and Risk Committee provides an independent review structure within NMBI to measure and evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of its risks, governance and internal control procedures and its financial reporting framework.

The Preliminary Proceedings Committee (PPC) gives initial consideration to complaints made about a registered nurse or registered midwife. When a complaint is received, the PPC will consider all of the information relating to the complaint and will form an opinion as to whether there is sufficient cause to warrant further action being taken. If the PPC is of the view that there is a sufficient cause to warrant further action, it will refer the matter to the Fitness to Practise Committee (FTPC) for a sworn oral inquiry.

More information on the work of the committees is available on our website.

The Health Products Regulatory Authority has published the 105^th edition of its Drug Safety Newsletter. 

This issue provides information on pregabalin and Direct Oral Anticoagulants (DOACs) including:

• Pregabalin

Respiratory depression without concomitant use of opioids or other CNS depressants

• Direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs)

Reminder of the importance of adhering to product information and existing measures to minimise the known risk of haemorrhage

• Reporting of suspected adverse reactions
• Direct Healthcare Professional Communications published on the HPRA website since the last Drug Safety Newsletter

For further details please click here.

Government approves draft heads of bill to amend the Mental Health Act

The Government has approved the draft heads of bill to amend the Mental Health Act. The draft bill contains over 120 proposed changes including introducing guiding principles for adults and children into the Act enhancing the voice of people using mental health services. Provisions for consent to treatment will be brought in line with the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015 and the Mental Health (Amendment) Act 2018.

The draft bill is the result of an extensive consultation between the Department of Health and key stakeholders over the past number of years.

The Government decision was welcomed by the Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly and the Minister of State for Mental Health and Older People, Mary Butler as well as mental health groups.

Minister Donnelly said: “it is an important step in ensuring that the rights of people accessing services are fully vindicated."

The Department of Health will work with the Office of the Attorney General and a formal bill will be drafted and sent to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health. The heads of bill will also be available on the department’s website.

For more information, please click here.

Specialist menopause clinics to be established nationally

Specialist clinics are set to be introduced across the country as part of a new approach to menopause care.

Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly announced that his department will be establishing Ireland’s first specialist centre at the National Maternity Hospital (NMH) on Holles Street in Dublin later this year. The new clinic will be supported by GPs, with a certified special interest in the area of menopause and clinical nurse/midwife specialists. Additional clinics are planned to open around the country in 2022.

Minister Donnelly said, “This is as an important part of an integrated solution to delivering better health experiences for women before, during and after the menopause.”

The announcement comes following a recommendation from the Women’s Health Taskforce, set up by the Department of Health in 2019 to improve the standard of women’s healthcare. Funding of over €150,000 will be provided through the Women’s Health Fund.

National clinical guideline on adult sepsis published

Earlier this month, the Department of Health published the National Clinical Effectiveness Committee’s (NCEC) National Clinical Guideline on Sepsis Management for Adults (including maternity).

The guideline aims to help healthcare professionals recognise and treat sepsis and septic shock in patients.

The initiative, launched on World Sepsis Awareness Day (13 September), is led by the HSE National Clinical Programme on Sepsis and supported by the Department’s Clinical Effectiveness Unit.

Welcoming the publication of the guideline, Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly said ,“building on work in previous years to improve sepsis management, I see the publication of this guideline as a further advance in improving the standard and consistency of care for patients with sepsis across the country”.

Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening complication of an infection and is more common in the very young, the elderly or those with a weakened immune system. The HSE is encouraging everyone to be aware of the signs and symptoms by asking ‘Could it be Sepsis?’.

Please see the HSE website for more information.

World Patient Safety Day 2021

World Patient Safety Day took place earlier this month to raise public awareness and engagement in health care safety and promote global action to prevent and reduce avoidable harm in health care.

Celebrated on 17 September, the theme of this year’s event was ‘Safe maternal and newborn care’ which aims to highlight and prevent the harm to women and babies that occurs due to unsafe maternal and newborn care during pregnancy, delivery and the first few days of life.

World Patient Safety Day is part of a World Health Organization (WHO) global campaign to ensure that patient safety is established as a global health priority.

The WHO has also called on healthcare leaders, facility managers and workers globally to adopt a set of 5 World Patient Safety Day Goals 2021 to improve maternal and newborn safety at the points of care, particularly around childbirth.

Further details of the WHO global campaign are available here.

After a long and established career, Anne-Marie Ryan PhD, RGN, RNT, BNS, MSc, FFNMRCSI has retired.

Setting standards in education is a very important role of NMBI and as Director of Professional Standards and Education (Nursing) at NMBI, Anne-Marie has made a truly significant contribution in ensuring that requirements and standards for nurse education are upheld. Through her work Anne-Marie has left a lasting impact on the organisation and the profession.

Over her distinguished 40-year career, Anne-Marie has worked as Chief Education Officer, Director of Registration and Director of Professional Standards and Education (Nursing) within NMBI. She has also worked as a General Nurse, Principal Nurse Tutor and Deputy Chief Nursing Officer in the Department of Health.

Sharing her best wishes, CEO of NMBI, Sheila McClelland said ‘I would like to take this opportunity to thank Anne-Marie for her dedication and commitment, and on behalf of everyone at NMBI, I wish her the very best in her retirement’.

In June’s eZine, we spoke to Anne-Marie about her career and you can read the full interview here.