30 September 2014

 

To:	Nursing Education Institutions
	National Department of Health
	Provincial Departments of Health
	All Stakeholders

Extension of Offering the Education and Training Programme Leading to Registration as a Nurse (General, Psychiatric and Community) and Midwife (Government Notice No. R.425 of 22 February 1985 as amended)

 

Purpose

To inform all stakeholders about the Council’s resolutions about the above mentioned subject.

 

Background

The end date of enrolment for the Legacy Qualifications is 30 June 2015 with a teach out period of two years as prescribed by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA).  The highest producers of the above mentioned programme are Public Nursing Colleges which are under the auspices of the nine Provincial Departments of Health and governed by various provincial ordinances or Nursing College Acts.  To align Public Nursing Colleges with the prescripts of the Higher Education Qualification Sub-Framework (HEQSF), these colleges must be registered as Higher Education Institutions to be eligible to offer qualifications on a Higher Qualification Band.  The process requires the establishment of the Public Nursing Colleges Act, policies and guidelines amongst other things, to gain status as a college sector which is prescribed in section 21(3) of the Higher Education Act, 1995 (Act No. 101 of 1995 as amended).

The table below provides the empirical evidence that Public Nursing Colleges are the highest producers of Professional Nurses as compared to the Universities over the last five years.

Table 1

NEIs	OUTPUTS
	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013
Colleges	1967	2337	2376	2473	2340
Universities	671	629	590	752	651

It is against this background that the Council resolved at its meeting held on 18–19 September 2014 that:

1. The period for Public Nursing Colleges to offer the Education and Training Programme Leading to Registration as a Nurse (General, Psychiatric and Community) and Midwife (Government Notice No. R.425 of 22 February 1985 as amended) be extended as follows :

1.1    The end date of enrolment is January 2018

1.2    The end date of qualification is December 2023.

 

This circular becomes implementable on the date of issue.

 

For further clarity on this circular, you are advised to contact the Senior Manager: Education and Training; Dr. S.W. Mkhize.

 

Yours sincerely

 

(Signed)

Mr. T. Mabuda 
Registrar and CEO
South African Nursing Council