Fitness-to-practise inquiries for nurses, midwives in public

Four nurses and one midwife struck off in 2013 following 13 inquiries

Fitness-to-practise inquiries into complaints about nurses and midwives are to be held in public from later this year, An Bord Altranais has said.

It is expected the first public hearing will be held in May or June at the offices of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland in Blackrock, Dublin.

The Nurses and Midwives Act was passed in 2011 but sections dealing with how complaints against nurses and midwives are handled, including public hearings, were not commenced by Minister for Health James Reilly until October 2nd, 2012.

All complaints received about nurses and midwives after October 2012 are being dealt with under the new Act, and any received before the commencement date are being dealt with under the old legislation, which requires inquiries to be held in private.

Complaints under the new legislation are initially considered by the preliminary proceedings committee in private, in a process similar to that operated by the Medical Council when dealing with complaints against doctors.

The new legislation has nine grounds of complaint, including professional misconduct, poor professional performance, non-compliance with a code of professional conduct, a relevant medical disability or an irregularity in relation to the custody, prescription or supply of a controlled drug.

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