Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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91. To ask the Minister for Health the reason it is being claimed that student nurses and midwives are supernumerary in view of the fact they are working on the frontline. [42437/20]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Clinical placements for nursing and midwifery students represent the practice experience of the undergraduate programme. Students on placements are learning through participation in practice and care delivery, under the supervision of qualified staff. They develop the practical knowledge, clinical skills and professional values required to meet the education standards for qualification and to become a registered practitioner.

This is the same in many European countries that have graduate nursing programmes.

Both Nursing and Midwifery are graduate professions must achieve academic, clinical and professional learning requirements to meet educational standards, as set by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland. 

Supernumerary status means that the student is in the clinical area but additional to the staffing numbers required for that area. Students work under supervision and alongside qualified staff who have undertaken specific training to support them in the clinical area. Students do not have responsibility for patient caseloads on supernumerary placements, though they can participate in the delivery of care.

The clinical experience required by student nurses and midwives is gained via the supervised care of patients.

Supernumerary status is critical for learning in complex environments. This places them on the frontline in a learning capacity.

During the 4th year Internship placement student nurses and midwives are no longer supernumerary. They remain under supervision and are considered equivalent to 0.5 WTE. This ensures a lighter patient case load for students and to avoid reducing the qualified nursing compliment, which has increased by 1,404 since last December.