Your support helps us to tell the story<\/p>\n
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.<\/p>\n
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.<\/p>\n
Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong>Read more<\/p>\n A scandal-hit regulator wrongly approved more than 350 \u201cfraudulent\u201d or \u201cunderqualified\u201d nurses to work in the UK, amid a \u201cdysfunctional\u201d culture exposed by The Independent<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)<\/a>, which regulates more than 800,000 nurses and midwives<\/a>, is also failing to spot workers who could pose<\/a> a serious risk to patient safety<\/a> and to prioritise investigating them.<\/p>\n These are just two of a series of failings uncovered in a review by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA), which regulates the NMC. That was prompted by The Independent\u2019s expos\u00e9, which revealed that the organisation\u2019s \u201ctoxic\u201d culture had allowed nurses to work unchecked<\/a> after whistleblower concerns were ignored.<\/p>\n The PSA\u2019s report found that the NMC is failing to meet 7 of 18 national standards, and warned that:<\/p>\n Have you been affected by this story? Email rebecca.thomas@independent.co.uk<\/strong><\/p>\n Alan Clamp, chief executive of the PSA, said its report showed that \u201curgent and significant improvements are needed at the NMC\u201d. The watchdog has escalated its concerns to health secretary Wes Streeting and to the vice-chair of the health and social care select committee.<\/p>\n Responding to the report, Crystal Oldman \u2013 who is the chief executive of the Queen\u2019s Nursing Institute, which represents community nurses, and is also on a government-appointed board overseeing the NMC \u2013 said: \u201cA major step change is needed.\u201d<\/p>\n She warned: \u201cThere\u2019s no evidence that there has been a wholesale change. If they\u2019ve not met seven out of the 18 standards, then that is an enormous alarm bell to be ringing.<\/p>\n \u201cTwo years since the whistleblower<\/a>\u2019s concern, and there\u2019s no indication that they\u2019re succeeding on all of these counts, and that is hugely worrying for public protection. That\u2019s their first reason for being there: to protect the public.\u201d<\/p>\n Lynn Woolsey, chief nursing officer at the Royal College of Nursing, said the NMC needs to \u201cstart turning the ship around for the good of nursing and healthcare\u201d, adding that \u201curgent progress is needed\u201d given the serious impact of its failings on some of its members.<\/p>\n One key standard the NMC failed to meet is the requirement to ensure that its register of nurses and midwives is accurate. This came after the PSA found that more than 350 people had been added to it in error, allowing them to work as nurses in the UK.<\/p>\n It said: \u201cThe total number of people added to the register without meeting the NMC\u2019s requirements is over 350, and could be over 400, depending on the outcomes of the CBT and OET investigations. The NMC\u2019s register is so large that this amounts to a relatively small proportion, but we consider it a large number of individuals to be registered in error. <\/p>\n \u201cMaintaining an accurate register is a key function and duty of a regulator, in the interests of public safety and public confidence. The NMC has added a large number of people to the register who had not met its requirements, and by the end of our review period it had not been able to fully remedy the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n These included \u201cfraudulent\u201d applications from centres in India, Nigeria and Pakistan that test nurses against NMC requirements, such as being able to speak English to the required standard. <\/p>\n The errors also included hundreds of newly qualified nurses who had not completed enough training hours, as revealed last year by The Independent. <\/p>\n The NMC told The Independent that out of those investigated for fraudulent entries, 16 people were removed in relation to one centre in Pakistan and of the 30 registrants at a centre in Nigeria to face investigations, 19 were removed. For those in the India-based centre, 68 nurses were affected, and in all cases, it was found that there wasn\u2019t sufficient evidence to prove fraud. <\/p>\n For nurses who may not have done the required hours, it was decided they met the competencies required for nursing standards. <\/p>\n Another failing was the requirement to identify and prioritise all cases that pose a serious risk to patient safety and to seek interim orders, placing restrictions on staff under investigation, where appropriate.<\/p>\n An internal audit carried out by the NMC, as revealed in January by this paper, found that it was failing to act on its safeguarding duties. While the PSA\u2019s review of 40 cases found no concerns in 90 per cent of them, it criticised the NMC for not seeking further information on criminal cautions and convictions accrued by a worker accused of domestic violence. <\/p>\n The PSA warned: \u201cThe NMC itself notes that it had been failing to identify and act on safeguarding concerns, and safeguarding continues to be the NMC\u2019s biggest strategic risk. This clearly raises concerns about the NMC\u2019s performance in this area over the course of the review period.\u201d<\/p>\n Paul Rees, the NMC\u2019s interim chief executive, said the report reflected a \u201cdark period\u201d in the NMC\u2019s history. But he insisted \u201cradical change\u201d was underway.<\/p>\n He said: \u201cI recognise that our performance in 2023-2024 was not good enough, and since joining the NMC in January, I\u2019ve committed to turning the organisation around \u2013 ensuring that we build a positive, empowering and inclusive culture for our people, and improve the regulatory experience for the public and nursing and midwifery professionals.<\/p>\n \u201cRadical change is underway, and we have made significant strides through the delivery of our Culture Transformation and Fitness to Practice plans. In the coming days, we will publish ambitious equality and diversity targets to ensure we achieve equity for our colleagues and everyone involved in our processes.\u201d<\/p>\n The latest findings follow the publication last July of the findings of a review headed by barrister Nazir Afzal KC<\/a>, which found evidence of a toxic and dysfunctional culture at \u201cevery level\u201d of the NMC, and that the organisation had turned a blind eye to serious sexual, physical and racist abuse.<\/p>\n\n