Scandal of under-qualified nurses in NHS as new recruits may have missed hundreds of hours of training

The UK’s under-fire nursing regulator is being forced to investigate as a third of universities may have released trainee nurses to work in hospitals despite failing to carry out hundreds of hours of mandatory training.

The potential training failure comes after the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) allegedly ignored warnings from universities about the problem three years ago, with the regulator only now taking action.

The blunder means an unknown number of nurses may have been sent to work in hospitals without the required amount of experience, and hundreds of student nurses have already had their graduation date delayed, leaving some concerned about public safety.

Thirty out of 98 universities are now facing reviews by the NMC into how they have monitored the qualifications of student nurses and midwives.

Read full story

Source: The Independent, 14 July 2024