A message from our President, Louise Kavanagh McBride 

Earlier this month, we began our NMBI Series 2023 – Partnership in Practice by co-hosting three events in collaboration with HSE Centres for Nursing and Midwifery Education (CNMEs) in Waterford, Tralee and Galway. A fourth event will be held in Dundalk on 22 November.

After last year’s successful series, we were delighted to meet with our colleagues from across the country to have an open conversation and dialogue about the challenges and opportunities facing the nursing and midwifery professions.

This year’s series focuses on the role of the CNME in education and continuing professional development opportunities for nurses and midwives; health and wellbeing; state of the Nursing and Midwifery Register and NMBI’s Fitness to Practise process.

As someone working in the higher education sector, it is very evident the enormous contribution made by the CNMEs including Level 8/QQI programmes that focus on life-long learning. There are great opportunities available in education and training, which are supported and funded by the Office of the Nursing and Midwifery Services Director (ONMSD).

As the regulator it is important that we support all of our registrants to acquire the skills and knowledge they need to advance their careers and remain within the Irish healthcare system. I believe that building on open dialogue and coming together to share our insights and experiences will ensure that we are equipped for the future.

The last few years have been challenging so as part of the series, we feel it is important to focus on health and wellbeing to ensure that as nurses and midwives are equipped to support themselves and their colleagues. It is up to all of us to individually and collectively think about our health and wellbeing whether on the frontline, in management, in an education setting or a student.

On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank everyone who took time out of their busy schedules to attend the series. I would like to thank the ONMSD and the CNMEs who partnered with us to host this year’s series, as well as my NMBI colleagues and Board members. 

The final event of the series will be held in Dundalk on 22 November, and you can register to attend on Eventbrite.

A full report and video recording of each event will be available once the series concludes.

The Irish Times Higher Options fair took place earlier this month and NMBI, in partnership with the Office of Nursing and Midwifery Service Director (ONMSD), were there to meet with students interested in a career in nursing and midwifery. 

We were delighted to have newly qualified nurses and midwives join us at the event, at the RDS in Dublin, to give second level students from across the country information on how to access further and higher-level courses. The recent graduates shared their experiences of college life and clinical practical placements, giving useful insights to the students attending Higher Options.

Our attendance at the Higher Options fair is part of the careers support and guidance we provide to nursing and midwifery students. Over the three-day event, NMBI, the ONMSD and our nursing and midwifery colleagues met thousands of students who attended our stand.

We also took part in five panel discussions, where panellists shared their experiences with aspiring nurses and midwives. Taking part in the panel from NMBI were, Lorraine Clarke-Bishop and Mary Devane. They were joined by recent graduates, Katie Shanley, Samantha Durning, Lauren Flanagan, Lara Folliard and Emma Lewis. We would like to thank all the panelists for sharing their insights and for promoting the professions.

Ahead of the event, we launched a new careers section of our website, which provides easy to understand information on the opportunities and routes to nursing and midwifery.

If you know someone who is interested in a nursing or a midwifery career, they can find out more on our website.

On 31 August, we hosted the first Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) Workshop at our office in Blackrock, Dublin. The workshop was attended by representatives from nine education bodies.

Our Director of Education Policy and Standards, Carolyn Donohoe began by welcoming attendees.

Our Professional Officer Lorraine Clarke Bishop gave an introduction to RPL from NMBI’s perspective and particularly in relation to the new Graduate Entry Nursing Education Programmes Standards and Requirements.

Órla Barry, Senior Manager, Qualifications Information and Learning Opportunities (QQI), gave a short presentation on the importance of RPL and considering the process from the perspective of the learner.

Dr Clare Walsh, Recognition of Prior Learning in HE Project: Head of Staff Development THEA, presented to the group on the RPL in Higher Education Project. Her presentation gave a brief overview of the RPL project followed by a questions and answers session.

Group discussions took place on key topics around RPL and what it means to the education of nurses and midwives.

Further workshops will be held before the end of the year with the next one scheduled for the end of October.

We would like to thank everyone who attended the workshop for their input and look forward to engaging with our stakeholders in future workshops.

Pictured (L-R): Leo Kearns, Medical Council President; Dr Suzanne Crowe, Medical Council President; Mr Justice David Barniville, President of the High Court; Dr Louise Kavanagh McBride, NMBI President and Sheila McClelland, NMBI CEO

On 26 September, in partnership with the Medical Council of Ireland, we hosted a conference on The Role of the High Court in Fitness to Practise Regulatory Matters.  

The event was a unique opportunity for those involved in regulation to discuss the role of the High Court.

President of the High Court, Mr Justice David Barniville presided over the conference and facilitated the discussions.

Our President, Dr Louise Kavanagh McBride and Dr Suzanne Crowe, President of the Medical Council opened the conference which was attended by more than 100 delegates.

Speakers at the event included Shelley Horan BL; Caoimhe Daly BL; Dr Edward Mathews, INMO; Eimear Burke, partner at Fieldfisher Solicitors; Remy Farrell SC; Nathan Reilly BL; Lorna Lynch SC BL and Kevin Dunne.

Pictured (L-R):Eimear Burke; Shelley Horan; Dr Edward Mathews; Lorna Lynch; Caoimhe Daly; Mr Justice David Barniville; Kevin Dunne and Nathan Reilly

Closing the conference, our CEO Sheila McClelland and Leo Kearns, Medical Council CEO, Leo Kearns thanked President Barniville for facilitating the discussions and for his valuable insights.

We would like to thank Mr Justice Barniville, the speakers and the Medical Council for their support in hosting the conference.

On 30 August, we met with our Clinical Facilitator colleagues involved in general and psychiatric/mental health adaptation programmes for the final focus group in our series.

The series was held as part of a review of the Compensation Measures for Nurses Trained Outside of Ireland (2019).

During the session, our colleagues shared their experiences of facilitating programmes and offered suggestions on how to improve the adaptation process. The feedback we have received from this focus group, and previous focus groups, will inform the revision of the Compensation Measures for Nurses Trained Outside of Ireland document.

We were delighted at the level of interest and feedback we received through our series and we would like to thank everyone who participated.

We have published our Customer Service Charter and Action Plan 2023-2025 which outlines the level of service we aim to provide to our customers.

We are committed to providing high-quality, timely, efficient and courteous customer service in all interactions, always treating customers equally.  

Our Customer Service Charter outlines the level of service NMBI aims to provide to our customers and the Customer Service Action Plan 2023-2025 sets out the actions we will take over the next three years to deliver on the Charter.

Both documents have been developed in line with our Statement of Strategy 2023-2025 and the Government's Twelve Guiding Principles of Quality Customer Service for public sector organisations.

Both documents were revised following a public consultation held from May to July 2023.

The Customer Service Charter and Action Plan 2023-2025 are available to read on our website.

We are seeking expressions of interest from registered nurses and midwives to join our Expert Witness Panel for Fitness to Practise inquiries. 

Expert witnesses will work on behalf of NMBI’s CEO to give their professional opinion to the Fitness to Practise Committee considering complaints made against registrants. 

We are seeking individuals who:

• are currently registered in one or more of the 12 divisions of the Register of Nurses and Midwives maintained by NMBI. (Nurses and midwives registered in the United Kingdom may also apply)
• have a minimum of five years’ post-registration experience in nursing or midwifery (including public, private and voluntary sectors; specialist areas of practice within general, children and paediatric, psychiatry or mental health, intellectual disability, older persons and midwifery; advanced practice; prescribing; referral of radiological procedures; and end of life care)
• are currently employed in a senior nursing or midwifery post (Clinical Nurse or Midwife Manager 2 or above) within a practice setting (including Practice Development Co-ordinators, Clinical Facilitators, Advanced Nurse and Midwife Practitioners, Assistant Directors of Nursing or Midwifery, Directors of Nursing or Midwifery)
• have a good understanding of the role and functions of and the guidance provided by NMBI
• have good verbal and written communication, analytical and reasoning skills, IT skills, and understanding of GDPR and data security.

Expert witnesses may be required from all areas of practice; however, we frequently seek experts in such areas as midwifery and care of the older person in nursing homes or community hospitals. 

Expert witnesses are asked to provide their opinion to the Fitness to Practise Committee on whether the alleged conduct of a registrant amounts to professional misconduct, poor professional performance and/or non-compliance with a code of professional conduct. As such, it is necessary for the expert witness to have the requisite degree of expertise in the discipline and/or specialist area of nursing or midwifery practice to which the complaint relates. 

The work of the expert witness typically involves a review of documentation relating to a complaint against a registrant to identify instances (if any) of professional misconduct, poor professional performance and/or non-compliance with a code of professional conduct, preparing a report setting out their opinion, and possibly attending at an inquiry hearing. Additional information can be found in our Role of the Expert Witness (Second Edition) document.  

Interested individuals must submit a completed Expression of Interest Form and a copy of their CV to eoi@nmbi.ie. 

If you would like any further information on the panel and what is involved, you can contact ftp@nmbi.ie.   

Suitable individuals will then be included on NMBI’s Expert Witness Panel. Please note there is no guarantee of work arising from being placed on the panel. 

We have published site inspection monitoring reports for Atlantic Technological University of the Shannon (ATU) and University College Cork (UCC). 

The reports provide a monitoring update of the site inspections conducted by NMBI last year. The update reports are based on information provided by each education body in collaboration with their practice partners.

As part of our role as a regulator, we assess and approve all undergraduate programmes leading to registration in nursing and midwifery. To ensure these education programmes are of a high standard, we conduct site inspections of university and college departments as well as their partner placement sites. These reports provide an in-depth look at each education programme and include a summary of the commendations, conditions and recommendations for best practice in professional education.

We would like to thank both education bodies and their practice partners for their collaboration and engagement with the process.

The reports are now available to read on our website. 

Earlier this week, we attended the Pathways Education and Careers Guidance Conference 2023 at the Galmont Hotel in Galway.

This event provides students in the West of Ireland with an opportunity to learn about further education, training and employment options available to them post-Leaving Certificate.

More than 1,000 students attended Pathways 2023 and Professional Officers at NMBI, Lorraine Clarke-Bishop and Mary Devane were there to provide information and career options to future nursing and midwifery students.   

More information about what options are available and how to apply for a career in nursing and midwifery can be found on the careers section of our website.

We have published site inspection summary reports for University College Dubin (UCD) and St Angela’s College, Sligo.

As part of our mandate to protect the public, we assess and approve all education programmes in nursing and midwifery across the country, conducting site inspections of university and college departments, and their partner hospitals and health services to ensure high standards of nursing and midwifery education and practice. 

The site inspection of UCD took place in March 2023 to review both nursing and midwifery education programmes, while the site inspection of St Angela’s College, Sligo took place in April 2023 to review nursing education programmes. Both reports were approved by the Board of NMBI on 19 July.

All site inspection reports of education bodies and their practice partners are published on our website and are available to the public.

The inspection reports provide an in-depth look at each undergraduate programme leading to registration and include a summary of the commendations, conditions and recommendations for best practice in professional education.

We would like to thank both education bodies and their practice partners for their collaboration.

The reports are available to view on our website.

The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has launched a National Engagement on Digital Health and Social Care survey in partnership with the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE).

The aim of the engagement is to identify professionals’ and the public’s wants, needs, and readiness for digital health and social care. This includes learning about the attitudes of nurses and midwives to the public having digital access to their own health and social care information and possible impacts of digital care for professionals and the public.

HIQA is seeking input from healthcare professionals and would like to hear from nurses and midwives on the subject. If you would like to take part, you can complete their online survey by 8 October.

The findings of the national engagement will be used by HIQA, the Department of Health, and the HSE to help develop recommendations, strategies, policies, and legislation in relation to the digitisation of health and social care services.

For more information and to complete the survey, please visit the HIQA website.