26 November 2019

TO:	National Department of Health
	Provincial Departments of Health
	Private Health Care Providers
	All Stakeholders

 

Training of Registered Nurses and Midwives to perform paracervical lock as an aspect of pain management during termination of pregnancy (TOP)

 

The South African Nursing Council (SANC) is cognizant of a number of initiatives by Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s) aimed at improving the health outcomes in an effort to improve the health and wellbeing of South Africans, which is highly commendable. However, it has come to the attention of Council that some of the training provided to nurse practitioners requires them to function beyond their Scope of Practice, as outlined in the Regulations Relating to the Scope of Practice of Persons Who are Registered or Enrolled under the Nursing Act, 1984. (GG No. R2598 of 30 November 1984).

 

This matter was discussed by the Council at its meeting held in September 2019. The Council expressed concern in particular with the training of Registered Nurses and Midwives to perform Paracervical block (PCB) to clients undergoing Manual Vacuum Extraction during Termination of Pregnancy (TOP). The SANC maintains that Paracervical block is an invasive procedure which is outside the current Scope of Practice of Registered Nurses and Midwives. For this reason, training of nurses to perform such a procedure is not supported by SANC. While the SANC supports professional development, it urges and encourages employers to ensure that in-service trainings/capacity building/skills development initiatives provided to nurse practitioners complies with the regulatory prescripts of the nursing profession and does not unduly expose nurses and midwives to potential unprofessional conduct.

 

Nurse practitioners are also reminded that they are independent practitioners who are personally accountable for their decisions and actions while carrying out their responsibilities in the profession and are urged to practice their profession within the ambit of legislation.

 

Kind Regards

(Signed)

Ms SA Mchunu
Registrar and CEO
South African Nursing Council

 

22 November 2019

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

 

South African Nursing Council – Year-end Closure

 

The South African Nursing Council offices will be closed for the year-end from Tuesday, 24 December 2019 at 12:00 midday, and re-open on Monday, 6 January 2020 at 08:00 am. Kindly note that on 24 December, for operational reasons the gates will be closed at 11: 00 am already.

 

Annual fees must be paid into the Council’s bank account on or before 31 December 2019 to avoid restoration fees – note that banks take up to three (3) days to clear payments and thus all bank electronic transfers need to be made by 24 December to ensure it reaches the SANC by 31 December 2019. 

 

The SANC banking details are: 

Name of bank:	First National Bank
Account number :	514 211 86 193
Branch code :	253145
Reference :	Person’s own SANC Reference Number followed by ANLFEES

 

Whilst waiting for the Annual Practising Certificate to be posted by the SANC, the employer can verify the registration status of the practitioner through the SANC website by logging into the SANC eRegister at https://www.sanc.co.za/eRegister.htm. To do this, they will require the practitioner’s SANC reference number or Identity Number (ID No).

 

We wish you all the best over the festive season and look forward to working with you in 2020.

 

Kind regards

(Signed)

Ms SA Mchunu
Registrar and CEO
South African Nursing Council