Pictured speaking at the conference (L to R): Lorraine Clarke Bishop, our Interim Director of Education, Policy and Standards and Mary Devane, Professional Lead for the Professional Competence Scheme

The Irish Association of Directors of Nursing and Midwifery (IADNAM) hosted its annual conference on 2 and 3 October in Dundalk, bringing together nursing and midwifery leaders from across the country.  

The theme of this year’s event was Nursing and Midwifery Leadership Speaking with Purpose: Civility in Action and focused on the power of leadership in promoting respect, collaboration and quality in healthcare.  

Lorraine Clarke Bishop, our Interim Director of Education, Policy and Standards and Mary Devane, Professional Lead for the Professional Competence Scheme (PCS), co-presented on Professional Regulation in Practice.  

In her presentation, Lorraine discussed the revised Code of Professional Conduct and Ethics, highlighting the new principle of leadership. She emphasised to nursing and midwifery leaders the importance of this principle in promoting high-quality professional practice and fostering a culture of safety in person centred care. Mary provided an update on the Pilot PCS, noting that preliminary evaluation findings indicate positive feedback from participants. NMBI is now progressing the next phase of the pilot, focusing on employers’ legal obligations to facilitate nurses and midwives in maintaining professional competence.  

The conference offered NMBI a valuable opportunity to engage directly with senior nursing and midwifery leaders, share insights from the pilot evaluation and hear their perspectives on employers’ responsibilities in supporting professional competence across the health service.  

NMBI was also represented by our CEO, Carolyn Donohoe and our Director of Registration, Dr Ray Healy who took time to get their seasonal flu vaccine from vaccinator Barbara O’Brien.