Commenting on the announcement made today (Wednesday) by the Nursing and Midwifery Council that checks in its registration process have not been consistently applied over a 12-year period, UNISON head of professional services Gail Adams said:
“This is a serious system failure that should never have been allowed to happen.
“It beggars belief this could have continued so long, particularly when the NMC has operated under greater scrutiny because of other mistakes.
“Staff who rely on this system will want to know what went wrong and why it’s only just come to light.
“Patients, their families and registrants rely on the NMC as the gatekeeper of public trust and confidence. It’s only right that its held to the same high standards expected of the people it registers.
“For those affected, it will mean an uncertain and agonising wait, so decisions must now be made quickly, fairly and transparently.
“It’s important the NMC has recognised the problem and apologised, but it must go further and ensure steps are taken to prevent another mistake occurring.”
Notes to editors:
– UNISON is the UK’s largest union, with more than 1.3 million members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.
Media contacts:
Anthony Barnes M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk
The post NMC failings will let down staff and undermine patient confidence appeared first on UNISON National.
Comments are closed.