Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 12 Mar 1996

Vol. 462 No. 8

Written Answers. - Education Requirement for Nursing.

Mary Wallace

Ceist:

98 Miss M. Wallace asked the Minister for Health the way in which a person (details supplied) in County Meath could be advised by the Mater Hospital, Dublin 7, that she would not be issued with an application form in view of the fact that she had not reached the education requirements of honours biology and an honour in two other subjects when she was advised by Blanchards-town Hospital, County Dublin, that honours biology was not an entry requirement and that her application could be considered at the next intake but unfortunately the next intake was not until April 1997 and could be accepted by Middlesex University Hospital, England for a first class place; the reason requirements of hospitals like the Mater Hospital are so high in view of the fact that nursing is a caring profession; the way in which this person could be considered by Middlesex University Hospital, England to warrant a first class place in nursing and be advised by an Irish hospital that her lack of an honour in biology meant that she did not merit the issuing of an application form for completion; his views on the fact that a person could be refused an application form for nursing in her own country and thereby forced to emigrate; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5535/96]

Minister for Health (Mr. Noonan,

Limerick East): The Mater Hospital is a public volountary hospital and the selection of student nurses to train in the hospital is a matter for the hospital itself. All schools of nursing must comply with the minimum educational requirements specified in the Rules of An Bord Altranais when selecting applicants for pre-registration training. Schools of nursing are free to require a higher standard if they so wish and in practice many schools do so. They may not however apply a lower standard. The educational requirements sought by the Mater for student nurse training this year as advertised were:

Leaving Certificate Subjects

Irish, English, mathematics, one other language, a laboratory science subject and one other subject.

Grades

Minimum Grade C3 in higher level papers in any three of these subjects, one of which must be a science subject and minimum grade D3 in ordinary and higher level papers in the other three subjects.

This is a higher standard than the Bord Altranais minimum which is two honours and four passes in the subjects: Irish, English, mathematics, a science subject and two others. The situation with regard to student nurse training in this country is that at any given time there are more applicants than there are places available in schools of nursing. As a result, each year a number of unsuccessful applicants apply to hospitals in other EU countries for training places. Provided such training complies with the relevant EU directives such nurses are eligible for registration by An Bord Altranais on their return to this country.

The standardisation of educational entry requirements is currently being considered as part of the implementation of diploma based pre-registration nurse training and education.