Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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139. To ask the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to delays in processing registration applications at the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland for those who were qualified outside Ireland; if so, if there is a reason for the delays; and if this will be addressed given the shortage of nurses at the present time. [55830/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Under the Nurses and Midwives Act, 2011, the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) is responsible for the regulation of nurses and midwives in Ireland, including the registration of nurses and midwives. During the latter part of 2021, the NMBI had been experiencing an increased volume of overseas registration applications as well as delays in processing applications overall. Following consultation, my Department sanctioned additional resources to deal with the backlog. These have been in place for some time now and timelines for processing applications have significantly reduced.

In 2021 there were 4,546 applications from overseas nurses and midwives and, based on current trends, the NMBI estimates that it will receive just over 6,000 applications in 2022. The increase in applications from overseas applicants seen in recent years continues to be sustained.

So far in 2022, NMBI has issued over 6,200 Decision Letters to overseas applicants. This is well more than double the number issued during the full year of 2021 (2,430) and NMBI expects to have issued over 7,000 by year-end. A Decision Letter is a key milestone for applicants and usually (98% of cases) includes an instruction for the applicant to go through a ‘compensation measure’ to allow them to demonstrate their clinical skills in terms of meeting the standard required in Ireland set by NMBI.

Approximately 80% of nurses and midwives pass their required compensation measures (either an adaptation period or an aptitude test) and convert to a registrant within six months of their decision letter being issued. Following registration, they can join the nursing and midwifery workforce. In the period up to January 2022, 95% of initial applications received by NMBI were incomplete applications. This increases the lead in time for registration as time is lost while individuals gather (and supply to NMBI) the necessary documents and information which had not been supplied initially. As of the end of August 2022, only 55% of applications were incomplete at the point of submission, which is a substantial improvement.