NI opts out of emergency powers to put student nurses on front line of coronavirus pandemic: Despite NHS crisis we’re not at the ‘same stage’ as England says chief nursing officer

Northern Ireland’s nursing chief has opted out of emergency powers used in England to draft student nurses onto the front lines of the battle with coronavirus.
By Niall Deeney
Published 28th Jan 2021, 13:13 BST
PACEMAKER BELFAST 02/04/2020 Northern Ireland Chief Nursing Officer Professor Charlotte McArdle at a press conference at Parliament Buildings, Stormont during the first wave of the pandemic last yearPACEMAKER BELFAST 02/04/2020 Northern Ireland Chief Nursing Officer Professor Charlotte McArdle at a press conference at Parliament Buildings, Stormont during the first wave of the pandemic last year
PACEMAKER BELFAST 02/04/2020 Northern Ireland Chief Nursing Officer Professor Charlotte McArdle at a press conference at Parliament Buildings, Stormont during the first wave of the pandemic last year

Chief Nursing Officer for Northern Ireland, Professor Charlotte McArdle, confirmed the decision in a letter to student nurses thanking them for their efforts during the pandemic and welcoming the announcement of a one-off £2,000 payment.

Health Minister Robin Swann announced the one-off payment to student nurses and allied professionals during a press conference on Wednesday night.

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This was announced alongside a one-off payment of £500 for all front-line health staff in recognition of their “heroic” efforts in saving lives during the coronavirus crisis.

In an open letter to student nurses and midwives, Professor McArdle confirmed she had decided against using “emergency education standards” to allow final-year students to take up paid clinical placements as the health service struggles with the impact of the pandemic.

She said that despite the “significant challenges” facing the health service here, the situation has not been as severe as parts of England.

“As you may be aware, the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) has recently announced the reintroduction of emergency education standards that can be flexibly applied as required across the four UK countries,” Professor McArdle said in her letter.

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“These emergency standards enable final year nursing students to opt-in to support the response to the Covid-19 pandemic, via paid clinical placements.”

She continued: “In Northern Ireland, the progress of the Covid-19 pandemic — although presenting significant challenges to our healthcare service —is not currently at the same stage as in England, where some regions have decided to adopt the emergency standards.”

She added: “I do not believe it is appropriate to disrupt your programmes through withdrawing clinical placements for any year group, or authorising deployment of final year students into paid clinical placements at this time.”

She said she was “pleased” with the announcement of the £2,000 payment and thanked the students for their efforts.

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Related topics:Northern IrelandEnglandProfessorNHSRobin SwannCovid-19