In a report they state that the wrong balance is being struck between allowing healthcare professionals to operate freely within the EU and protecting the safety of patients.
They have called for organisations, such as the
GMC and the
NMC, to be allowed to carry out the tests.
The report is from the House of Lords Social Policies and Consumer Protection EU Sub-Committee.
Baroness Young of Hornsey, chair of the sub-committee, said current EU regulations are ‘absolutely unacceptable’ and added that they ‘put patients in the UK and elsewhere at risk’.
NMC chief executive, Professor Dickon Weir-Hughes, has welcomed the news.
‘Nurses and midwives who trained outside the UK enrich the diversity of healthcare services delivered across the UK,’ he said.
‘However, being able to effectively communicate with patients and colleagues is fundamental to delivering care that is safe.
‘Patients should be confident that the people caring for them are fully competent to do so, and this includes being able to discuss and understand the often complex physical and mental healthcare requirements of the people in their care.’
The report also demands a change in EU regulations so member states are required to share fitness to practice information with relevant bodies.
This is something that the GMC and NMC already do, however, it is a practice that organisations in other countries don’t always adhere to.
