NMC chief reassures nurses over revalidation deadline

Nurses and midwives have been assured that the new revalidation system will go ahead as planned from April 2016 and will add value to their practice.

Nursing and Midwifery Council chief executive Jackie Smith said registrants should embrace the new re-registration process, which will replace PREP as an opportunity for nurses to showcase their professionalism and practice.

Addressing delegates at the Unite/CPHVA annual conference in Manchester today, Ms Smith said: 'We are meeting a public expectation here. It is essential that nurses and midwives can demonstrate to the public and their colleagues what they do every single day. 

'I believe revalidation gives us that opportunity and it will add value by allowing registrants to demonstrate professional practice and professionalism built on the updated code.'

Concerns over whether the new system would go live in England were raised last month after the Department of Health and NHS England, which is acting as England's revalidation board, failed to indicate that the country was ready to proceed.

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland had all confirmed they were ready before the NMC's council approved revalidation on October 8.

England's chief nursing officer, and the chair of the England revalidation board, Jane Cummings belatedly wrote to Ms Smith on October 30 to back the NMC's decision.

Ms Smith tried to allay nurses' and midwives' fears today over the new revalidation requirement to provide practice-related feedback and reflective accounts.

In the 19 pilots which have trialled the process, discussions about these two elements with a confirmer had proved to be the 'most useful and effective' parts of the new system, she said.

These discussions should take place during annual appraisal meetings, Ms Smith added, urging registrants who have not already started to prepare their revalidation portfolio to do so before the new year.