Nurses and Midwives Act 2011

PART 1 Preliminary and general

1.. Short title and commencement.

1.— (1) This Act may be cited as the Nurses and Midwives Act 2011.

(2) This Act shall come into operation on the day or days that the Minister may appoint by order either generally or with reference to a particular purpose or provision and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.

(3) An order under subsection (2) may, in respect of the repeal of the Act of 1985, and the revocation of the statutory instruments, effected by section 4, appoint different days for the repeal of different provisions of that Act and the revocation of different provisions of those statutory instruments.

2.. Interpretation.

2.— (1) In this Act—

“Act of 1985” means the Nurses Act 1985;

F1["allegation", in relation to a complaint, means an allegation—

(a) arising out of the complaint, and

(b) which falls within one or more than one of the grounds specified insection 55(1);]

“An tÚdarás” means An tÚdarás um Ard-Oideachas;

“appropriate fee”, in relation to a provision of this Act, means the fee F1[(if any)] determined under section 38(1) that is appropriate for that provision;

F1["authorised officer" means a member of the staff of the Board appointed undersection 56(1)to be an authorised officer to perform the functions specified undersection 56(2);]

“Board” means the Board established by section 6 of the Act of 1985 and continued and renamed by section 6(1);

“candidate” means a person who is following a course of study or a period of adaptation leading to first time registration with the Board;

“candidate register” means the register established under section 46(1)(b);

“chief executive officer” means the chief executive officer of the Board appointed under section 28;

“complaint” means a complaint under section 55(1);

“conditions” includes terms F1[and restrictions];

“Court” means the High Court;

F2[“Directive 2005/36/EC”has the meaning assigned to“Directive”in Regulation 3(1) of the Regulations of 2017;]

“decision”, in relation to an appeal under section 52, F1[52A,] 73, 81or 86, includes part of a decision;

“Fitness to Practise Committee” means the committee established under section 24(2)(b);

F1["health or social care", in relation to a person (howsoever described), means the health or social care that the person provides or has provided in his or her capacity or former capacity as a member of a relevant profession;]

“inquiry” means an inquiry into a complaint by the Fitness to Practise Committee pursuant to a referral under section 61;

F1["investigation", in relation to a complaint, means an investigation referred to insection 56A(1);

"investigation report", in relation to a complaint, means a report referred to insection 56A(3)following the investigation of the complaint;]

“local authority” has the same meaning as it has in the Local Government Act 2001;

F1["material matter", in relation to a person (howsoever described), means—

(a) any of the following taken by any regulatory body (whether in or outside the State), other than the Board, in relation to the provision of one or more than one kind of health or social care by the person:

(i) the imposition of conditions (other than relevant conditions) on any registration or licence;

(ii) the suspension, withdrawal or removal of any registration or licence;

(iii) the refusal to grant registration or a licence,

or

(b) a conviction in the State for an offence triable on indictment (other than a spent conviction within the meaning ofsection 5of theCriminal Justice (Spent Convictions and Certain Disclosures) Act 2016) or a conviction outside the State for an offence consisting of acts or omissions that, if done or made in the State, would constitute an offence triable on indictment;]

“midwives division” means that division of the register of nurses and midwives referred to in section 46(2)(b);

“Minister” means the Minister for Health;

“nurses division” means that division of the register of nurses and midwives referred to in section 46(2)(a);

“poor professional performance”, in relation to a nurse or midwife, means a failure by the nurse or midwife to meet the standards of competence (whether in knowledge and skill or the application of knowledge and skill or both) that can reasonably be expected of a registered nurse or registered midwife, as the case may be, carrying out similar work;

“Preliminary Proceedings Committee” means the committee established under section 24(2)(a);

“professional competence scheme” means a scheme established under section 89(1);

“published in the prescribed manner”, in relation to any document or information (howsoever described), means the document or information, as the case may be—

(a) is published on an internet website of the Board (including part of such a website) to which access is readily available by members of the public and where anything published is readily available for inspection by members of the public, and

(b) is available for inspection, at the offices of the Board and at all reasonable times, by members of the public;

“register of nurses and midwives” means the register of nurses and midwives established under section 46(1)(a);

“registers establishment day” shall be construed in accordance with section 47(1);

“register of nurses” means the register established under section 27 of the Act of 1985;

F1["registered address"—

(a) in relation to a registered nurse or registered midwife, means the address specified in the register of nurses and midwives as the nurse’s or midwife’s address, and

(b) in relation to a registered candidate, means the address specified in the candidate register as the candidate’s address;

"registered candidate" means a candidate whose name is entered in the candidate register;]

“registered medical practitioner” has the same meaning as it has in the Medical Practitioners Act 2007;

“registered midwife”—

(a) before the registers establishment day, means a midwife whose name is entered in the midwives division of the register of nurses within the meaning of the Act of 1985, and

(b) on and after the registers establishment day, means a midwife whose name is entered in the midwives division of the register of nurses and midwives;

“registered nurse”—

(a) before the registers establishment day, means a nurse whose name is entered in the register of nurses within the meaning of the Act of 1985, and

(b) on and after the registers establishment day, means a nurse whose name is entered in the nurses division of the register of nurses and midwives;

F3[…]

F4[“Regulations of 2017”means the European Union (Recognition of Professional Qualifications) Regulations 2017 (S.I. No. 8 of 2017);]

“relevant condition”, in relation to a registered nurse or registered midwife, means any condition attached to the registration of the nurse or midwife pursuant to—

(a) section 51,

(b) a decision confirmed or given under F1[section 52(4)or52A(4)],

(c) a decision confirmed or given under section 73 or 74,

(d) section 79(3), or

(e) a decision confirmed or given under section 81(3);

F1["relevant medical disability", in relation to a person, means a physical or mental disability of the person (including addiction to alcohol or drugs) which may impair his or her ability to practise nursing or midwifery or a particular aspect thereof;]

F1["relevant profession" means any of the following professions:

(a) dentist;

(b) a designated profession within the meaning of section 3 of theHealth and Social Care Professionals Act 2005;

(c) medical practitioner;

(d) midwife;

(e) nurse;

(f) pharmacist;

"restriction" includes a condition;]

“rules” means rules made under section 13;

“third country” means a state other than the State or another Member State.

(2) For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby declared and recognised that midwifery is a separate profession to nursing.

F5[(3) Unless otherwise specified in this Act, nothing in this Act shall be construed to prejudice the performance by the Board of its functions under the Regulations of 2017 as the competent authority in respect of the regulated professions (within the meaning ofRegulation 3of those Regulations) concerned.]

3.. Regulations.

3.— (1) The Minister may make regulations prescribing any matter or thing which is referred to in this Act as prescribed or to be prescribed, or for the purpose of giving full effect to this Act.

(2) The regulations may contain such consequential, supplementary or incidental provisions as may be necessary or expedient for that purpose.

(3) Every regulation made under this Act shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as practicable after it is made and, if a resolution annulling such regulation is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the regulation is laid before it, the regulation shall be annulled accordingly but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

4.. Repeal, revocation, etc.

4.— (1) The Act of 1985 is repealed.

(2) The following orders are revoked:

(a) National Council for the Professional Development of Nursing and Midwifery (Establishment) Order 1999 (S.I. No. 376 of 1999);

(b) National Council for the Professional Development of Nursing and Midwifery (Establishment) Order, 1999 (Amendment) Order 2000 (S.I. No. 352 of 2000);

(c) National Council for the Professional Development of Nursing and Midwifery (Establishment) Order, 1999 (Amendment) Order 2004 (S.I. No. 800 of 2004); and

(d) Health (An Bord Altranais) (Additional Functions) Order 2010 (S.I. No. 3 of 2010).

5.. Expenses.

5.— Any expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be approved by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

PART 2 Bord Altranais agus Cnáimhseachais na hÉireann

6.. Continuance in being of Board.

6.— (1) Notwithstanding the repeal of section 6 of the Act of 1985 by section 4—

(a) the body known as An Bord Altranais, or in the English language as the Nursing Board, established by that section 6 shall continue in being and shall be known as Bord Altranais agus Cnáimhseachais na hÉireann or, in the English language, as the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, and

(b) subject to subsections (5) to (7), anything commenced but not completed by that body, or the committee established under section 13(2) of the Act of 1985, before the repeal of that section by section 4, may be carried on and completed by the Board (with its membership as constituted under this Act) or that committee (with its membership as constituted under section 13 of the Act of 1985), as the case requires, after such repeal as if sections 6 and 13 of the Act of 1985 had not been repealed.

(2) The Board is a body corporate with perpetual succession and an official seal and with power—

(a) to sue and be sued in its corporate name, and

(b) with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, to acquire, hold and dispose of land or an interest in land, and to acquire, hold and dispose of any other property.

(3) The Board may, subject to the provisions of this Act, regulate its own procedure.

(4) The Schedule applies to the Board.

(5)(a) A person who is a member of the committee referred to in subsection (1)(b) but who ceases to be a member of the Board under section 22(6) shall, notwithstanding that cesser of membership of the Board, be deemed for the purposes of subsection (1)(b) to satisfy the requirements of section 13 of the Act of 1985 relating to the membership of that committee.

(b) The committee referred to in subsection (1)(b) shall be deemed, for the purposes of that subsection, to satisfy the requirements of section 13(4), (5) and (6) of the Act of 1985 relating to its membership even if it ceases to satisfy those requirements by reason of the cesser of membership of one or more of its members.

(6) Where pursuant to subsection (1)(b) the Board may take any relevant action in respect of the registration of a nurse or midwife, then the Board may take the equivalent action under this Act and—

(a) in the case of equivalent action falling within paragraph (a) of the definition of “equivalent action” in subsection (7), section 79 shall apply to the equivalent action accordingly,

(b) in the case of equivalent action falling within paragraph (c) of the definition of “equivalent action” in subsection (7)—

(i) paragraph (b) of the definition of “relevant condition” in section 2(1) shall be construed to include the equivalent action accordingly, and

(ii) sections 46(8) and 80 shall apply to the equivalent action accordingly.

(7) In subsection (6)—

“equivalent action”, in relation to the registration of a nurse or midwife, means—

(a) in the case of paragraph (a) of the definition of “relevant action”, the cancellation of the registration pursuant to a decision referred to in section 76(3),

(b) in the case of paragraph (b) of the definition of “relevant action”, the suspension of the registration pursuant to a decision referred to in section 76(3),

(c) in the case of paragraph (c) of the definition of “relevant action”, the attachment of conditions to the registration pursuant to a decision referred to in section 76(1);

“relevant action”, in relation to the registration of a nurse or midwife, means any action under Part V of the Act of 1985 pursuant to which the Board may—

(a) erase the nurse’s or midwife’s name from the register of nurses,

(b) give effect to a decision of the Board that during a period of specified duration the registration of the nurse’s or midwife’s name in the register of nurses shall not have effect, or

(c) attach conditions to the retention of the nurse’s or midwife’s name in the register of nurses.

7.. Seal of Board.

7.— (1) The seal of the Board shall be authenticated by—

(a) the signature of the President of the Board or another member of the Board authorised by the Board to act in that behalf, and

(b) the signature of an employee of the Board authorised by the Board to act in that behalf.

(2) Judicial notice shall be taken of the seal of the Board and, accordingly, every document—

(a) purporting to be an instrument made by the Board, and

(b) purporting to be sealed with the seal of the Board authenticated in accordance with subsection (1),

shall be received in evidence and be deemed to be such instrument without further proof unless the contrary is shown.

8.. Object of Board.

8.— The object of the Board shall be the protection of the public in its dealing with nurses and midwives and the integrity of the practice of nursing and midwifery through the promotion of high standards of professional education, training and practice and professional conduct among nurses and midwives.

9.. Functions of Board.

9.— (1) The Board shall—

(a) do all things necessary and reasonable to further its object, and

(b) perform its functions in the public interest.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), the Board shall—

(a) establish and maintain the register of nurses and midwives and the candidate register,

(b) establish procedures and criteria for assessment and registration in the register of nurses and midwives and the candidate register, and the divisions of those registers, including the issue of certificates of registration and renewal of registration,

(c) approve programmes of education and further education necessary for the purposes of registration and continued registration,

(d) keep the programmes referred to in paragraph (c) under review,

(e) act as the competent authority for the purposes of—

(i) the mutual recognition of professional qualifications of nurses and midwives F6[under the Regulations of 2017],

(ii) all matters referred to in Directive 2005/36/EC which relate to the role of a competent authority for the purposes of the recognition of professional qualifications of nurses and midwives,

(f) enter into agreements, with bodies in third countries that are duly authorised to perform functions in third countries that correspond to the functions of the Board, in relation to—

(i) the recognition by the Board, for the purposes of registration, of degrees, diplomas and other qualifications relating to the practice of nursing and midwifery awarded in those third countries,

(ii) the recognition by such bodies, for the purposes of authorisation to practise nursing and midwifery in third countries, of degrees, diplomas and other qualifications relating to the practice of nursing and midwifery awarded in the State,

(g) specify standards of practice for registered nurses and registered midwives, including the establishment, publication, maintenance and review of—

(i) appropriate guidance on all matters related to professional conduct and ethics for registered nurses and registered midwives,

(ii) appropriate guidance on the maintenance of the professional competence of registered nurses and registered midwives, and

(iii) a code of professional conduct for registered nurses and registered midwives,

(h) specify criteria regarding the creation by employers of specialist nursing and midwifery posts,

(i) establish committees to inquire into complaints,

(j) make decisions and give directions under Part 9 relating to the imposition of sanctions on registered nurses and registered midwives,