As the Deputy may be aware, Clinical placement learning is mandatory and comprises 50% of nursing and midwifery undergraduate educational programmes. Mandatory supernumerary clinical placements occur for 45 weeks from year 1 of the programme right through to the first semester of year 4. Allocation to a clinical placement is driven by educational needs enabling the student to achieve stated learning outcomes. In line with Directive 2013/55/EU, supernumerary clinical placements ensure learning takes place in a clinical learning environment and that essential experience is gained under the supervision of a registered nurse or midwife called preceptors. These supernumerary students are not employees and are therefore not paid. As students, rather than employees, the primary focus of their clinical placements is on learning. Changing the supernumerary status of those placements to that of an employee would remove the educational protections that enable such students to participate in an observing and a learning capacity.
The Pandemic Placement Grant (PPG) of €100 per week was an exceptional and temporary measure put in place to assist eligible nursing and midwifery students on supernumerary clinical placement specifically during the pandemic while work was ongoing by my Department to progress the recommendations arising from the 'Longer Term Review - Matters relating to Student Nurses and Midwives' undertaken by Mr. McHugh.
The enhanced travel and subsistence scheme for student nurses and midwives undertaking supernumerary clinical placement arose following recommendation from the McHugh Report, which was an examination of the existing arrangements regarding additional travel, subsistence and accommodation requirements of student nurses and midwives on clinical placement specifically. It is governed by Circular 4/2023: Payment of Clinical Placement Allowances to Undergraduate Supernumerary Nursing and Midwifery Students, as issued by my Department on 27th February 2023.
Student nurses and midwives’ final year internship placement consists of a continual 36-week rostered clinical placement, including annual leave. The internship placement is a paid placement as the student nurses and midwives and are considered as 0.5 WTE of the workforce. I am ensuring that their salary is set in line with the relevant recommendation in the McHugh Report, by increasing their rate of pay to 80% of Point 1 of the Staff Nurse/Midwife pay scale. As these internship students receive a paid salary, they are not eligible for clinical placement allowances which are designed specifically to support student nurses and midwives undertaking supernumerary clinical placements.
A sponsorship scheme is available from the HSE for public health service employees to train as a nurse or midwife, governed by HR Circular 40/2020: Sponsorship for Public Health Service Employees wishing to train as Nurses/Midwives. This sponsorship scheme is open to support staff in the Irish public health service who want to become nurses or midwives. To be eligible for this scheme, employees must be directly involved in delivering care to patients or clients in a nursing/midwifery context. For example, and as the Deputy refers to, healthcare assistants are eligible for this scheme. Successful applicants under this scheme, remain paid employees for the duration of their nursing or midwifery degree programme, and as such continue to receive their basic salary, in addition to receiving sponsorship of fees for their chosen programme of study. As with nursing and midwifery interns who are employees and therefore paid, students on the sponsorship scheme are paid employees and therefore, are not eligible to receive supernumerary clinical placement allowances. There are no plans to change this.
