The House of Representatives on Tuesday, asked the Nurses and Midwifery Council of Nigeria to immediately stop the implementation of the certificate verification guidelines for nurses expected to take effect from Thursday
Adopting a motion of urgent public importance sponsored by Hon. Patrick Umoh (APC, Akwa Ibom), the House directed its committee on Health Institutions to investigate the issue and report back to the House.
Moving the motion, Umoh informed that the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, in a memo dated February 7, put in place fresh guidelines for the verification of certificates of practising nurses in the country.
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“The requirement that applicants for verification must obtain a letter of good standing from the Chief Executive Officer of the applicant’s place of work is capable of creating forced labour and modern slavery as the applicant will be forced to be subject to the whims and caprices of applicant’s employer.”
The lawmaker said that the enactment of the Nursing and Midwifery (Registration, etc.) Act, Cap. N143, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, by the National Assembly was aimed at providing regulations and control of the practice of nursing and midwifery in Nigeria.
He said the council has issued revised guidelines for verification of certificate(s) dated February 7, 2024, which will come into force on March 1, 2024.
According to him, the guidelines stipulate that applicants for verification must have a minimum of two years post qualification experience from the date of issuance of permanent practice licence; obtain a letter of good standing from the Chief Executive Officer of the applicant’s place of work and the last training institution attended, and that processing of application shall take a minimum of six months.
He said further that there have been concerns, protests and stiff opposition to the implementation of the revised guidelines by health professionals led by the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives;
He said: “Verification of certificates is to confirm and authenticate an already existing certificate issued by the Nursing and Midwifery Council, therefore the requirement for two years post-qualification experience before verification of certificate is unreasonable, arbitrary and unfair, as it may, among other things, restrict the freedom of nurses seeking education or additional skills and training in foreign universities.
“The National Assembly is the body empowered by the Constitution to make laws for the country, and the requirement of two years post-qualification experience by the Nursing and Midwifery Council is to legislate through the back door, and therefore a usurpation of the powers of the National Assembly.