Circular 1/2009 Update on Community Service

Circular 1/2009 Update on Community Service

 
  

15 January 2009

TO ALL:Nursing Education Institutions
 Non-Training Institutions
 Stakeholders

Update on Community Service

 

A number of issues have arisen as a result of nurses who are completing Community Service. South African Nursing Council urges you to take note of the matters clarified below as this will reduce the confusion and resulting delays.

 

What happens on completion of Community Service

Once a nurse has completed the 12 month period of Community Service, he/she may be registered as Nurse (General, Psychiatric and Community) and Midwife. In order for these registrations to be effected, the correct procedure must be followed.

  1. The head of the public health establishment must submit a completion report with a declaration signed by both the head of the establishment and Provincial Coordinator for Community Service to the Nursing Council.
  2. The completion report referred to in 1 (above) must be submitted on the form obtainable from the Nursing Council for that purpose. Forms can also be downloaded and printed from the Nursing Council website (www.sanc.co.za).
  3. The completion report must be submitted to the Nursing Council within 30 days of completion of community service.
  4. Registration fees of R300-00 must be paid to the Council (R150-00 for registration in the category Nurse (General, Psychiatric and Community) and R150-00 for registration in the category Midwife).

Please note that some nurses paid additional registration fees to cover these amounts at the time when they were registered in the category Community Service. Others may have paid part of the additional registration fees at that time. PLEASE CHECK BEFORE MAKING PAYMENT!

If all of the community service requirements mentioned above are in order, the Nursing Council will delete the registration in the category Community Service from its register and will register the practitioner as Nurse (General, Psychiatric and Community) and Midwife with effect from the end of the month in which Community Service was completed.

 

Annual Practising Certificates – Query regarding the expiry date shown in respect of registration in the category Community Service

There have been a number of queries about the expiry date of the Community Service registration as shown on the Annual Practising Certificate for 2009. These nurses commenced Community Service on 1 January 2008 and if everything has gone well will have completed Community Service on 31 December 2008. Given this situation, the query is then raised as to why the Annual Practising Certificate shows the expiry date of the Community Service registration as 31 December 2009?

In fact, 31 December 2009 is quite correct. The reason is simply that a nurse is given TWO years in which to complete the period of community service – and is registered in that capacity for the full two year period (i.e. in this case from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2009).

SANC will continue to show the end of the TWO year period as the expiry date of the Community Service registration until such time as the completion of Community Service record is received by the Council.

 

Annual Practising Certificates – “Updating” is not generally a necessity under the Nursing Act, 2005

Nurses doing Community Service who have already paid the Annual Fee for 2009 will have been issued an Annual Practising Certificate that shows that they are registered in the category Community Service. When these nurses complete their Community Service and are registered as Nurse (General, Psychiatric and Community) and Midwife, they may feel that it is necessary to update their Annual Practising Certificate to reflect these new categories. In fact, some employers may insist on this “updating”.

This is generally unnecessary. The Nursing Act, 2005 makes it quite clear that a registration certificate is proof of registration for a period of 12 months from the date of registration shown on the certificate. For nurses who are completing Community Service at the end of December, 2008, the certificates of registration in the categories Nurse and Midwife will be dated 31 December 2008 and will be proof of registration in these categories up to 31 December 2009.



Signed
Hasina Subedar
Registrar and Chief Executive Officer 

© 2004 - 2020 South African Nursing Council (Under the provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005)

Disclaimer

Circular 5/2008 SANC Year end closure

Circular 5/2008 SANC Year end closure

 
  

4 December 2008

TO ALL:Nursing Education Institutions
 Nursing Stakeholders

South African Nursing Council – Year End Closure

22 December 2008 – 2 January 2009

 

The South African Nursing Council (SANC) offices will be closed at the year end from 22 December 2008 to 2 January 2009.

The SANC offices will reopen at 08:00 on 5 January 2009.

Kindly inform all persons in your institutions so that they are aware in advance of the dates the Council will be closed.

We apologise in advance for any inconvenience that this arrangement may cause you.



Signed
Ms H Subedar

Registrar and CEO
S A Nursing Council

 

Contact person regarding enquiries about this circular:  Ms Party-day Moloi

Telephone 012 426 9542

© 2004 - 2020 South African Nursing Council (Under the provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005)

Disclaimer

Circular 4/2008 SANC Examination Schedule 2009

Circular 4/2008 SANC Examination Schedule 2009

 
  

17 November 2008

TO ALL:Nursing Education Institutions
 Nursing Stakeholders

South African Nursing Council
Examination Schedule – 2009

 

Click here to see the Examination Schedule for 2009.

 

Kindly take note of the following requirements applicable to the Council examinations. 

  1. The closing date for examination should be strictly adhered to and no exceptions or allowances will be made to extend these dates. 

  2. Only registered students/pupils will be eligible to enter for an examination:  The head of the nursing education institution must ensure that all students/pupils are registered with the Council within the prescribed period (this does not apply to the Admission Examination for Enrolled Nursing or to the Admission Examination for Foreign Nurses).

  3. The Council will only process examination applications for entry into the Council examinations that meet the following requirements:

a)    submitted on the Council’s Application for Examination Form which is completed in full and signed by the relevant person(s).  (The name/s and surname as appearing in the identity document.)

b)    accompanied by the prescribed fee or proof of payment of the fee into the Council’s bank account, such payment should be done by the school (group payment) and not by individual students.  The latter delays processing of applications as some payments are outstanding at the time of processing:  Banking details are as follows: 

Name of bank:First National Bank
Account number:51425166282 (Current Account)
Branch:Pretoria Branch Corporate Core Services
Branch code:251445 253145
Reference:Reference number MUST appear on ALL deposits!

 c)    includes all the required documentation.

  1. Only those students/pupils that have been issued an examination number will be eligible to write Council examination.

  2. All practical MARK SHEETS must be submitted to Council by the end of the month in which the examination is written. Examination results cannot be processed if practical MARK SHEETS as per the SANC format are not submitted on time.

  3. The SANC requests the NEIs not to coerse the invigilator/s to enclose the practical mark sheet or any other document with the Examination package.

  4. The Council reserves the right to cancel an examination reflected on the schedule if there are insufficient candidates for such an examination(s).

  5. The SANC requests the NEIs to inform all learners to refrain from individually contacting the Council to enquire about examination results.

  6. In respect of the Admission Examination for the Course Leading to Enrolment as a Nurse, the school has a responsibility to identify a learner(s) who cannot be admitted into the second year of the Course Leading to Enrolment as a Nurse (R.2175) before the learner has written and successfully passed the admission examination for the R.2175 course.  No learner(s) shall be allowed to write the final year examination of the R.2175 course before they have passed the Admission examination.

 

Signed
HASINA SUBEDAR
REGISTRAR & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
THE S A NURSING COUNCIL 

© 2004 - 2020 South African Nursing Council (Under the provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005)

Disclaimer

Circular 3/2008 Increases in Nursing Council fees

Circular 3/2008 Increases in Nursing Council fees

 
  

8 September 2008

TO ALL:Nursing Education Institutions
 Non-Training Institutions
 Stakeholders

Increases in Nursing Council Fees

 

South African Nursing Council has contained the increase to its fees for the last two years. Due to factors beyond our control we regret to inform you that it has become necessary to increase fees at this time. The decision of Council to increase fees was influenced largely by inflation and the new legislative requirements which placed a drastic increase in resource demands on the Council. The Nursing Act, 2005 promulgated in February 2008 has imposed a number of new regulatory responsibilities and processes which must be performed by the Nursing Council and fulfillment of these require an increase of resources to establish.

Examples of additional regulatory responsibilities include:

Implement new categories of nurses and scopes of practice;
Introduce a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) system for nursing;
Institute an appeals mechanism; and
Expand the investigation role of Nursing Council to include cases of poor quality of nursing in institutions.

Nursing Council wishes to assure stakeholders that it is committed to a programme of continuous improvement of service delivery through systems improvement and the use of technology. We have also ensured that the increased fees remain in line with or lower than all other professional fees for health workers in South Africa.

 

Notice of Increase in Fees

You are hereby notified that increases in South African Nursing Council fees have been published in Government Gazette No. 31374 dated 5 September 2008. This circular contains details of all the increased fees and the dates from which they will be applied.

Copies of Government Gazette No. 31374 of 5 September 2008 are attached to this circular for your information. Copies of the Government Gazette can be purchased from the Government Printers.

 

Annual Fees for 2009 will increase from 1 October 2008

The Annual Fees for 2009 will increase from the date of publication of the notice in the Gazette. For practical purposes, the increased Annual Fees for 2009 will be payable for all amounts received on or after Wednesday 1 October 2008.

 

Category of RegistrationAnnual Fee for 2009 (including VAT)
     • Professional Nurse
     • Midwife
     • Registered Nurse/Midwife
R400-00
     • Staff Nurse
     • Auxiliary Midwife
     • Enrolled Nurse/Midwife
R250-00
     • Auxiliary Nurse
     • Nursing Auxiliaries
R180-00

This means that in respect of payments for 2009 Annual Fees made prior to 1 October 2008:

1. A person who has paid the annual fee (in full) prior to the above date will not have to pay the difference between the old and the new fees.

2. If fees have been paid via postal services and the posting date on the article is before 1 October 2008, the person will not be expected to pay the difference.

3. If fees have been paid electronically and the payment appears on the Nursing Council bank statement before 1 October 2008, the person will not be expected to pay the difference. In this regard, please check the rules of your own banking institution regarding the effective date for payments made electronically. Council will not make any exceptions in this regard since these rules form part of the electronic banking agreement between the client and the banking institution.

 

All Restoration Fees will increase from 1 October 2008

The Restoration Fees will increase with effect from Wednesday 1 October 2008.

 

 Category of RegistrationRegular Restoration Fee (including VAT)
Restoration Fees     • Professional Nurse
     • Midwife
     • Registered Nurse/Midwife
R350-00
     • Staff Nurse
     • Auxiliary Midwife
     • Enrolled Nurse/Midwife
R250-00
     • Auxiliary Nurse
     • Nursing Auxiliaries
R230-00

 

 Category of RegistrationReduced Restoration Fee (including VAT)
Restoration Fees
(following voluntary removal) 
     • All CategoriesR70-00

 

Other Fees that will increase from 1 October 2008

The following fees will also increase with effect from Wednesday 1 October 2008.

 

Description of FeeFee Amount (including VAT)
Application Fees
(foreign qualifications)
R500-00
Certificate of Status FeesR150-00
Registration Fees
(payable on application for registration in a category of nursing) 
R150-00

 

VAT

Please note that the above fees all include VAT at the current rate of 14%.



Signed
Hasina Subedar
Registrar and Chief Executive Officer 

© 2004 - 2020 South African Nursing Council (Under the provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005)

Disclaimer

Circular 2/2008 Reinstatement of Ms Hasina Subedar as Registrar of the South African Nursing Council

Circular 2/2008 Reinstatement of Ms Hasina Subedar as Registrar of the South African Nursing Council

 
  

6 August 2008

To all:Nursing Education Institutions
 Non-Training Institutions
 Nursing Stakeholders

 

Reinstatement of Ms Hasina Subedar as Registrar


Following the outcome of the much publicized CCMA case between Ms Hasina Subedar and the South African Nursing Council, Ms Subedar has been reinstated as Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the South African Nursing Council with effect from 1 July 2008.

On behalf of Council, I welcome Ms Subedar back as Registrar and wish her every success as together we strive to achieve the level of service to the public of South Africa envisioned in the new Nursing Act, 2005.

Our heartfelt thanks are extended to the Minister of Health, Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang for seconding Ms Thandi Manganye to the Nursing Council as Acting Registrar during this period. Ms Manganye’s contribution to the Nursing Council is appreciated by both the Council and the Administration. We wish her well as she returns to her post in the National Department of Health.

 

Signed
Ms N J Makhanya
Chairperson
South African Nursing Council

© 2004 - 2020 South African Nursing Council (Under the provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005)

Disclaimer

Circular 1/2008 Launch of SANC eRegister system

Circular 1/2008 Launch of the SANC eRegister system

 
  

5 August 2008

To all:Nursing Education Institutions
 Non-Training Institutions
 Nursing Stakeholders

 

The South African Nursing Council is very pleased to announce the launch of:

 

eRegister

 

eRegister is the South African Nursing Council Electronic Register of Nurses and Midwives.

eRegister is published in terms of section 35 of the Nursing Act, 2005 as a COPY of the official register. It is primarily intended for use by those who need to verify the registration status of a practitioner and the validity of the original documents presented by the practitioner. Practitioners may also use eRegister to confirm their own registration status.

You can access eRegister from the SANC website or directly by typing the following address in your web browser:

www.sanc.co.za/eregister

TIP: Once the “Conditions of Use” page opens, save it as one of your FAVOURITES and you won’t have to remember the address each time you use it.

USING eRegister

In order to use eRegister you will need to know either the practitioner’s SANC number or South African Identity Number.

eRegister has been designed to be as simple to use as possible. If you read the instructions on each screen, and follow them, you should not have any difficulty. Take a moment to read through the Help page before getting started as it contains additional information to assist you. Please read all notes boxes carefully – they contain important information about the information displayed using eRegister.

TIP: The easiest and fastest way to use eRegister is by using just the numeric keypad and the Enter key. 

IMPORTANT NOTES ON USING eRegister

Employers are cautioned that they may not rely solely on eRegister when checking the credentials of a new employee. The applicant’s identity must be authenticated by the production of the necessary identity documents and the necessary original documents which serve as proof of registration in terms of the Nursing Act, 2005.

Once the employee’s true identity has been established, eRegister can be used to monitor the on-going registration status of the practitioner.

CONFIDENTIALITY

In order to protect practitioners, confidential information such as contact details, etc. will not be made available on eRegister. For the same reason, users will not be able to use the system to extract lists of practitioners. Criteria searches such as those which may be required by recruitment organizations will also not be permitted.

 

Signed
Ms Hasina Subedar
Registrar and CEO

© 2004 - 2020 South African Nursing Council (Under the provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005)

Disclaimer

Circular 8/2007 SANC Year end closure

Circular 8/2007 SANC Year end closure

 
  

10 December 2007

To All:Nursing Education Institutions
 Nursing Stakeholders

 

South African Nursing Council – Year End Closure

21 December 2007 – 03 January 2008

 

The South African Council will close its offices for the Christmas holidays at 16:30 on 21 December 2007 and re–open at 08:00 on 03 January 2008.

 

Please contact Ms P Moloi at telephone (012) 426 9542, if there are any queries about this circular.

 

(Signed)
Mrs Thandi Manganye
Acting Registrar
The S A Nursing Council

© 2004 - 2020 South African Nursing Council (Under the provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005)

Disclaimer

Circular 9/2007 SANC Examination Schedule 2008

Circular 9/2007 SANC Examination Schedule

 
  

2007-12-07

To:Nursing Education Institutions
 Nursing Stakeholders
 Invigilators

 

South African Nursing Council
Examination Schedule – 2008

 

Click here to see the Examination Schedule for 2008.

 

Kindly take note of the following requirements applicable to the Council examinations. 

  1. The closing date for examination should be strictly adhered to and no exceptions or allowances will be made to extend these dates. 

  2. Only registered students/pupils will be eligible to enter for an examination, the head of the nursing education institution must ensure that all students/pupils are registered with the Council within the prescribed period (this does not apply to the Admission Examination for Enrolled Nursing or to the Admission Examination for Foreign Nurses).

  3. The Council will only process examination applications that meet the following requirements:

a)    submitted on the Council’s official Application Form for Examination which is completed in full and signed by the relevant person(s).

b)    accompanied by the prescribed fee or proof of payment of the fee into the Council’s bank account, such payment should be done by the school (group payment) and not by individual students.  The latter delays processing of applications as some payments are outstanding at the time of processing; banking details are as follows: 

Name of bank:FNB
Account number:51425166282 (Current Account)
Branch:Pretoria Branch Corporate Core Services
Branch code:251445 253145
Reference:Reference number MUST appear on ALL deposits!

 c)    includes all the required documentation.

  1. Only those students/pupils that have been issued an examination number will be eligible to write Council examination.

  2. All practical MARK SHEETS must be submitted to Council by the end of the month in which the examination is written. Examination results cannot be processed if practical MARK SHEETS as per the SANC format are not submitted on time.

  3. The Council reserves the right to cancel an examination reflected on the schedule if there are insufficient candidates for such an examination(s).

  4. The SANC requests the NEIs to inform all learners to refrain from individually contacting the Council to enquire about examination results.

  5. In respect of the Admission Examination for the Course Leading to Enrolment as a Nurse, the school has a responsibility to identify a learner(s) who cannot be admitted into the second year of the Course Leading to Enrolment as a Nurse (R.2175) before the learner has written and successfully passed the admission examination for the R.2175 course.  No learner(s) shall be allowed to write the final year examination of the R.2175 course before they have passed the Admission examination.

 

Signed
THANDI MANGANYE
ACTING REGISTRAR & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
THE S A NURSING COUNCIL

© 2004 - 2020 South African Nursing Council (Under the provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005)

Disclaimer

Circular 7/2007 Transitional arrangements on re-curriculation + 3 items

Circular 7/2007 Transitional arrangements on re-curriculation

 
  

26 October 2007

To All:Nursing Education Institutions
 Nursing Stakeholders

 

  1. Transitional Arrangements on Recurriculation

  2. Application for Approval of Retrospective Registration as a Learner and Retrospective Exemption from an Already Acquired Professional Registration

  3. Admission to the Second Academic Year of the Course Leading to Enrolment as a Nurse (Government Notice No. R.2175 of 19 November 1993)

  4. Compliance with Provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005 and Regulations

1.    RECURRICULATION

1.1    Introduction

Nursing Education Institutions (NEIs) are required to review their curricula every five (5) years and submit these to the South African Nursing Council for approval

Currently there are legacy and provider qualifications registered by both SANC and NEIs on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF)

Further, two Standard Generated Body (SGB) – generated qualifications are already registered on the NQF i.e.

National Certificate: Auxiliary Nursing
Further Education and Training Certificate: Nursing

There is no implementation directive from the Council in respect of these qualifications as yet, but the profession will be kept informed should this status change

1.2    Transitional Arrangements

In view of the above, the Council at its meeting held on 20 and 21 April 2007 resolved that recurriculation for submission to Council be put in abeyance until the transitional arrangements in line with the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA)’s requirements are communicated to NEIs by the Council.

Programmes that are affected by this arrangement are the following:

Course leading to enrolment as a nursing auxiliary (Government Notice No. R. 2176 of 19 November 1993 as amended)
Course leading to enrolment as a nurse (Government Notice No. R.2175 of 19 November 1993 as amended)
Bridging course for enrolled nurses leading to registration as a general nurse or psychiatric nurse (Government Notice No. R.683 of 14 April 1989 as amended)
Education and training of a nurse (general, psychiatric and community) and midwife leading to registration (Government Notice No. R.425 of 22 February 1985)

This arrangement does not affect post basic/registration programmes

 

2.    Applications for approval of retrospective registration of learners and retrospective exemption from learning content contained in an already acquired professional registration

2.1    Application for approval of retrospective registration as a learner

On submission of completion of training records, the Council has observed that some NEIs fail to register learners at commencement of training as prescribed

This is a violation of regulations regarding:

Registers for students (Government Notice No. R.3735 of 14 November 1969)
Rolls for pupils (Government Notice No. R.3736 of 14 November 1969)
Rolls for pupil nursing auxiliaries (Government Notice No. R.1833 of 20 October 1972)

Adherence to the provisions of the above mentioned regulations as well as provision of section 16 (1) of the Nursing Act, 1978 (Act No. 50 of 1978) is mandatory and failure to comply constitutes an offence.

Programmes for which learners need to be registered with the Council on commencement of training are as follows:

R.880 2 May 1975
Regulations for the course for the diploma in psychiatric nursing for registration as a psychiatric nurse
R.254 14 February 1975
Regulations for the course for the diploma in midwifery for registration as a midwife
R.2175 19 November 1993
Regulations relating to the course leading to enrolment as a nurse
R.2176 19 November 1993
Regulations relating to the course leading to enrolment as a nursing auxiliary
R.425 22 February 1985
Regulations relating to the approval of and the minimum requirements for the education and training of a nurse (general, psychiatric and community) and midwife leading to registration
R.683 14 April 1989
Regulations relating to the minimum requirements for a bridging course for enrolled nurses leading to registration as a general nurse or psychiatric nurse
R.276 15 February 1980
Regulations for the course for the diploma in nursing administration
R.48 22 January 1980
Regulations for the diploma in Clinical Nursing Science, Health Assessment, Treatment and Care

2.2    Exemption in respect of already acquired professional registration within the course leading to registration as a nurse (general, psychiatric and community) and midwife

Where a learner commences a course of study in terms of Regulations relating to the Approval of and the Minimum Requirements for the Education and Training of a nurse (general, psychiatric and community) and midwife leading to registration, and such learner has one of the above registered against his/her name, the following is requested:

A clear indication of such a professional registration at the time of commencement of the course. (the name of the professional registration e.g. one year diploma in midwifery, should be clear )
Date of registration and certificate number
Intended/proposed duration of training in the intended/new course of study

 

3.    Admission to the second academic year of the course leading to enrolment as a nurse (Government Notice No. R. 2175 of 19 November 1993)

Regulation 10 (1) of the Regulations relating to the course leading to enrolment as a nurse, (Government Notice No. R.2175 of 19 November 1993), gives provisions for admission into the second academic year of this course i.e. passing the first year examination specified in these regulations or exemption in terms of regulation 7 of these regulations

It has been observed with concern that some schools admit learners into this level of the course without ensuring that the above mentioned provision is adhered to. This mostly affects enrolled nursing auxiliaries who underwent the course for the certification for enrolment as a nursing assistant in terms of Government Notice No. R.1834 of 20 October 1972. The duration of this course of study was one hundred (100) days minimum, and is not a direct equivalence of the course regulated by Government Notice No. R.2176 of 19 November 1993.

For this reason, the Council put together an upgrading package that is available for use by schools to prepare such candidates for the admission examination for the course leading to enrolment as a nurse. You are reminded that these are mere guidelines that can be adapted to suite current learning towards fulfillment of the desired outcomes of this course

The duration of such an upgrading course is determined by the school and the learner’s readiness to sit for such an examination.

You are therefore reminded that it is the responsibility of the school to identify and ensure that candidates are assisted throughout the process

 

4.    Compliance with provisions of the Nursing Act and Regulations

It is the responsibility of the school to acquire and keep the above especially those pertaining to the programmes your school offers.

It is hoped that this information will assist your school.

 

5.    Enquiries

Should further clarity be sought on the above matters, enquiries can be directed to the managers of Accreditation, Registration and Examinations

Contact details:012 – 420 1035
 012 – 420 1044

 

Your cooperation is always appreciated.

 

Yours sincerely

 (Signed)
S A Mchunu
Deputy Registrar: Professional Affairs
For Acting Registrar and Chief Executive Officer

© 2004 - 2020 South African Nursing Council (Under the provisions of the Nursing Act, 2005)

Disclaimer

Circular 6/2007 Processing of applications for R. 425

Circular 6/2007 Processing of applications

 
  

13 June 2007

To All:Nursing Education Institutions
 Nursing Stakeholders

Processing of Applications for:

Registration with the South African Nursing Council prior to successful completion of the four-year programme covered by the Regulations Relating to the Approval of and the Minimum Requirements for the Education and Training of a Nurse (General, Psychiatric and Community) and Midwife Leading to Registration (Government Notice No. R.425 of 22 February 1985)

Re-entry into the Council examination to rewrite failed examination papers/portions

1.    Background

1.1    Requirements for Registration

The Nursing Act, 1978 (Act No. 50 of 1978) specifies the requirements necessary to practice in any category of nursing. These include the certificate of a qualification in support of documents submitted with the application for registration.

In accordance with the Regulations relating to the approval of and the minimum requirements for the Education and Training of a Nurse (General, Psychiatric and Community) and Midwife (Government Notice No. R.425 of 22 February 1985) as amended, conditions for registration (admission to the register) include:

successful completion of the course/programme
complying with the programme objectives/outcomes
any other requirements for the award of the qualifications concerned.

1.2    National Qualifications Framework NQF Council’s response to Objectives and Principles of the NQF

In 1999, the South African Nursing Council responded to a national call for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) in line with the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) policy on retention of credits.

It approved issuing of certificates of professional registration for learners who had not successfully completed the course and had not acquired an academic qualification from their respective training institutions.

The purpose and spirit of such a concession was to assist learners who had undergone the whole programme and exhausted the legislated duration of the course, including provider concessions but had not passed all the subjects/courses of the programme to qualify for registration as a Nurse (General, Psychiatric and Community) and Midwife.

2.    Problems and Implications

An undesirable trend has developed over years, where learners abandon the programme without registering for all the courses and before completion or fulfillment of requirements of all sub-disciplines within the four year programme.

Such a practice is not in line with the initial purpose and spirit for which this concession was put in place in 1999.

The observed adverse effects are as follows:

Compromised registration of some components of this programme i.e. Midwifery and Psychiatric Nursing Science. This directly affects service delivery in respect of these areas.
Issuing of a Certificate of Registration by the Council without the learner having achieved a qualification affects the learner’s employability outside South Africa and raises indictment issues on the quality of nursing education in South Africa.

3.    Purpose of this policy framework

The purpose of this document is to:

create a legitimate route towards professional registration, supported by programme regulations
put in place a transitional arrangement until the new qualifications in line with the new Scope of Practice are available and registered on the NQF.
outline a process of re-entry into the Council examinations to re-write final examination papers/portions
waiver all previous communications in respect of this concession, following termination of the four year programme and re-writing of examinations

4.    Process of handling applications for registration/enrolment

Upon termination of training from this programme the following provisions shall be observed towards registration and enrolment:

4.1    Enrolment as a Nursing Auxiliary

This will be carried out administratively in accordance with the exemption provisions of the Regulations relating to the course leading to enrolment as a Nursing Auxiliary (Government Notice No. R.2176 of 19 November 1993, Section 7 (1)):

Conditions and Requirements are as follows:

application shall be considered if it is within 5 years of termination of training
declaration from the person in charge of school certifying that the theoretical and practical requirements equivalent to the requirements of the regulations published under Government Notice No. R.2176 of 19 November 1993 have been attained
completion of at least one year training of the four-year course
the candidate must have passed an examination in General Nursing Science and Art I
completion of at least 1000 hours of clinical practica
record of training shall be submitted to the Council by the relevant nursing school
completed form for registration/enrolment
payment of prescribed fee

 

4.2    Enrolment as a Nurse

This will be processed administratively in accordance with exemption provisions of the Regulations for the course leading to enrolment as a Nurse (Government Notice No. R.2175 of 22 November 1993, Section 7(1))

Conditions and Requirements:

application will be considered if it is within 5 years of termination of training
completed form for registration/enrolment
payment of prescribed fee
certificate (declaration) from person in charge of school on attainment of the theoretical and practical requirements equivalent to the requirements of the regulations published under Government Notice No. R.2175 of 22 November 1993
completion of at least two years of the four-year course
the candidate must have passed an examination in General Nursing Science and Art II or its equivalent
completion of at least 2000 hours of clinical practica
record of training shall be submitted to the Council by the relevant nursing school

4.3    Registration as a Nurse

There are no regulations providing for such registration following termination of training from the four-year programme.

The result is that no academic qualification can be awarded by the nursing education institution on termination of training

The following process will therefore be followed on termination of training after the third year or during the fourth year of training, or at the end of the fourth year where outcomes of the course have not been achieved:

4.3.1    Enrolment as a nurse

4.3.2    Approved school shall, upon receipt of an application to the school by the learner:

Register (Restore) the candidate as a learner into the Bridging Course (Government Notice No. R.683 of 14 April 1989) in order to give a legitimate student status. This will be done in accordance with regulations regarding registers for students i.e. Government Notice No. R.3735 of 14 November 1968 as well as provisions of Government Notice No. R.683 of 14 April 1989.

NB: Termination of Training Record must be submitted for the four year course as restoration cannot be effected on the Council’s system if the candidate is still registered as a learner in another programme.

Evaluate accumulated knowledge and skills through a formalized RPL process by comparing with the subject content (learning outcomes) of the Bridging Course for Enrolled Nurses leading to Registration as a General Nurse (Government Notice No. R.683 of 14 April 1989)

4.3.3    Progress of learners:

If the:

Evaluation reflects that requirements for registration as a general nurse have been fulfilled:

the school submits practical marks in line with requirements of the course
the candidate may challenge the final examination of the Bridging Course for Enrolled Nurses, towards registration as a Nurse

Evaluation reflects gaps in terms of subject content:

facilitation to close gaps will be undertaken by the school.
duration of academic support will depend on identified gaps (compiled portfolio of evidence is kept by the school).

4.3.4 Submission to the Council by the School:

Completed application form for resumption of training, at resumption of training
Applicable fee (restoration as a student)
Application for entry into final examination of the Bridging Course, if the student qualifies for immediate entry into examinations
Practical assessment marks
Declaration from the person in charge of the school that outcomes of the Bridging Course have been met either during the four year course or during the facilitation phase of RPL process at the school

 

NB: Time Frame:

Application will be accepted within three (3) years after termination of training. This requirement is due to rapid changes in education.

 

5.    Registration of single supplementary basic qualification(s)

No further single registration except General Nursing ( through the Bridging Course ) shall be granted after termination of training from the four-year programme
Single qualifications such as Midwifery, Psychiatry and Community Health Nursing shall be pursued separately after registration as a General Nurse and in accordance with relevant regulation(s) for each programme. In such cases, principles of RPL will be implemented where some of the minimum requirements as set out in the relevant regulations were fulfilled within the four year programme.
This will ensure portability of credits and avoid repetition of learning content already covered.

 

6.    Re-writing of failed examination papers/portions

A candidate who has failed a portion/paper in the Council examination for the first time follows the process outlined below:

Re-entry into any of the two consecutive examinations after publication of the examination results
An examination application form and prescribed fee must be submitted to the Council.
These submissions must be made within the prescribed time frames
Credits of the passed portion/paper will be retained
A candidate who has failed twice may be offered academic support by the Nursing Education Institution (NEI) in preparation for the third re-entry into an examination.  The school will keep and maintain records of such academic support
A candidate who after three attempts (full academic year) fails the examination, reregisters for the course and resumes training.

 

7.    Conclusion:

This policy revokes all other communication and policies in respect of the above concession following termination of training and in respect of rewriting of Council examinations

 

8.    Implementation:

The implementation date of this policy framework is 01 January 2008.

Any enquiries regarding this matter may be referred to

Deputy Registrar – Professional Affairs (Telephone: 012 420-1059)

OR

Manager – Examination/Registration Section (Telephone: 012 420-1044)

Email: [email protected]

 

Your cooperation in this regard will be appreciated.

 

(Signed)
S A Mchunu (Ms)
for Registrar and Chief Executive Officer

 

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