NMC Response To The CQC Report On Care Homes In England

In response to the report by the Care Quality Commission that one in four care homes in England are providing a poor service to older people, NMC Chief Executive and Registrar Dickon Weir-Hughes said:
"Poor care is never acceptable and nurses working in care homes have a responsibility within the NMC code: Standards of conduct, performance and ethics for nurses and midwives (2008) to act without delay if they believe they, a colleague or anyone else may be putting someone at risk. This includes issues relating to the environment of care.
"We know that we need to do more to help safeguard the health and wellbeing of patients and the public. These issues are being addressed through projects like our review of pre-registration nursing education which will set new standards for future nursing students. There is a particular emphasis on the fundamentals of care, such as compassion, nutrition, dignity and hygiene.
"We are doing more to support nurses and midwives with their duty to raise and escalate concerns, and will be consulting on new guidance in January.
"Improving patient and public safety is a joint responsibility between the individual, the regulator and employers and our aim is to develop effective partnerships to support this common goal.
"In March of this year, we issued guidance for nurses to support them in caring for older people. However, the principles within Guidance for the care of older people apply to anyone who works with older people.

"To support older people and those who care for them, we produced Care and respect every time. I don't believe that nurses set out to provide poor care and together with the guidance, these documents can help both older people, their carers and nurses to work together to make sure older people receive care in a way that is appropriate for them. However, it is important to emphasise that the majority of staff working in care homes are not registered nurses and, as such, do not fall within the jurisdiction of the NMC. We recognise that there exists a potential deficit in public protection regarding those who work alongside registered nurses in care homes and other care environments but who are not regulated by the NMC. Therefore, we will be examining what appropriate actions should be taken to regulate these groups of staff based upon an assessment of the potential risks, if any, they pose to patients and the public by continuing not to be regulated.
"Since March, we've distributed over 132,000 copies of the guidance and over 146,000 copies of Care and respect every time. Both documents are free to order or download from our website and I would encourage anyone who works with older people to get a copy.
"The NMC exists to safeguard the health and wellbeing of the public and one of our responsibilities is to investigate thoroughly all referrals from those who believe a nurse or midwife has breached their code of conduct. Whilst we would encourage patients and their families who have experienced poor care to resolve issues at a local level in the first instance, we have a public duty to investigate all referrals that we receive and then to assess what, if any, further action may be needed."
Source Nursing & Midwifery Council NMC Response To The CQC Report On Care Homes In EnglandOriginally from: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/173373.php

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