We are seeking registrants with experience in midwifery and/or care of the older person to join our Expert Witness Panel for fitness to practise inquiries.  

Expert witnesses will be asked to give their independent professional opinion to the Fitness to Practise Committee reviewing complaints made against registrants.  

While expert witnesses working in all areas of practice may be required, there is currently a shortage of experts in the areas of midwifery and care of the older person in a nursing home or community hospital context.  

Registrants with experience in midwifery and/or care of the older person are encouraged to submit an expression of interest to join the panel.

To be considered eligible to join the panel, individuals must: 

• be currently registered on the Register of Nurses and Midwives maintained by NMBI 
• 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) 
• be currently employed in a senior nursing or midwifery post (Clinical Nurse or Midwife Manager 2 or above; Practice Development Co-ordinators, Clinical Facilitators, Assistant Directors of Nursing or Midwifery, Directors of Nursing or Midwifery) within a practice setting (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). 

During inquiries, expert witnesses are asked to provide their opinion on whether the alleged conduct of a nurse or midwife 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 allegations against a nurse or midwife, preparing a report setting out their opinion and possible attendance at an inquiry hearing. Additional information can be found in our current Guidance for Nurses and Midwives Acting as an Expert Witness document.  

Interested individuals must submit a completed Expression of Interest Form–Expert Witnesses 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 for being placed on the panel.