NEWS

CLINICIANS DEPLOYED AT MORE UK ENTRY POINTS AS EBOLA SCREENING INCREASES

REUTERS

Nurses will start screening some passengers for the Ebola virus at Gatwick Airport and the Eurostar terminal in London this week. Screening will also start soon at Birmingham and Manchester airports. Nurses at Heathrow Airport began screening passengers last week. There have been 8,997 Ebola cases and 4,493 deaths in this outbreak. Most cases have been in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone in west Africa.

Nurses will screen Eurostar passengers in London

Passengers arriving in the UK from one of the affected countries must complete questionnaires about their health and recent travel history. They are then either allowed to continue their journey or they undergo a clinical assessment by Public Health England (PHE) staff and if necessary are transferred to hospital for further tests. A PHE spokesperson said: ‘The screening provides an extra layer of reassurance and vigilance.’ Nurses in the UK are being asked what prevents them from volunteering to fight Ebola in west Africa. The survey is being carried out by the health protection research unit at the National Institute for Health Research in Liverpool. Specialist research nurse Claire Matata said: ‘‘We are looking at why more nurses and doctors are not coming forward. Once we know the reasons then they can start to be addressed.’ Go to tinyurl.com/p4qpu2a

STAFFING IS KEY ISSUE ACCORDING TO NICE GUIDELINE

The number of midwives needed should be determined at the start of every shift by the midwife in charge and more frequently in services such as birthing units, according to a draft safe staffing guideline. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is developing its second guideline on safe staffing in the NHS, after previously advising on nurse-patient ratios in adult inpatient wards. The midwifery guideline recommends determining staffing levels more frequently in services where needs can change quickly. Royal College of Midwives head of policy Sean O’Sullivan said: ‘Some 3,200 more midwives are needed in England. We hope this guidance will make a significant contribution to the elimination of the shortage.’ A consultation on the guideline will run until November 13. To read the draft guideline go to tinyurl.com/mq2ncw5

HCA role lacks clarity, says leading nurse director Healthcare assistants should train full-time for up to three years and then be regulated, according to nurse managers across Europe. The European Nurse Directors Association says healthcare assistants (HCAs) should be required to take exams based on a set of national standards. Its study of HCA training and employment in 15 of the 28 European Union (EU) countries found that only three countries – the UK, Ireland and Switzerland – do not regulate them. By contrast, Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Italy and Slovenia regulate HCAs’ duties and education, and require them to have a licence to practise. The EU has endorsed the nurse directors’ recommendations as best practice, while the European Commission has tendered for a new study to establish

if a common training framework for HCAs could be created across its member states. European Nurse Directors Association honorary president Jacqueline Filkins consulted the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the RCN as part of her study. Speaking at a conference last week, she pointed out that there is a lack of clear boundaries around HCA roles in the UK.

THERE HAS TO BE A SAFE FRAMEWORK IN WHICH TO WORK; THERE HAS TO BE SUPERVISION AND MENTORING ‘There has to be a safe framework in which to work; there has to be supervision and mentoring arrangements,’ she said. ‘Best practice in education and training would include two to three years of study

with a minimum of 50 per cent on-the-job supported learning in practice.’ The UK government has repeatedly rejected calls for the statutory regulation of HCAs, despite lobbying by organisations including the RCN. Under the Care Act 2014, passed into law in May, all HCAs will be required from March 2015 to hold a Care Certificate to show they have completed basic training before working unsupervised. The certificate, which HCAs will complete within 12 weeks of starting work, will be made up of 15 standards including infection control and life support. It was introduced in response to a government-commissioned review into HCA regulation and training by the Times journalist Camilla Cavendish, published in July 2013. To read the ENDAreport go to tinyurl.com/loy4jxl

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HCA role lacks clarity, says leading nurse director.

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