UCC SONM 25 Year Book

UCC / School of Nursing and Midwifery

The Commission on Nursing recommended that responsibility for the provision of an undergraduate degree in nursing be transferred to the third level sector by 2002. The Nursing Education Forum established in 1999, prepared a document outlining the principles and partnerships arrangements for the transition A Strategy for Pre-registration Nursing Education Degree programme (Government Publications, 1999). Students attending Schools of Nursing transferred and became the responsibility of the third-level institution since it was impossible to maintain two different structures for education – the Schools of Nursing in Hospitals (offering the Hospital Diploma) and the third level Department/Schools (offering the Degree). While the Commission deliberated on the merits of a “generic” nurse, it decided that, contrary to the practice in other countries, that nurses should not be educated in a generic manner. Rather three distinct programmes continued to be provided, in General Nursing, Psychiatric Nursing and Mental Handicap Nursing. The School of Nursing and Midwifery played a pivotal role in the work of the Commission on Nursing. The Head of School, Professor Geraldine McCarthy-Haslam was appointed as a Member of the Commission by the then Minister for Health and Children, Mr. Michael Noonan, TD. The Commission undertook six reviews of the literature, and staff at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, UCC (Drs. Eileen Savage, Patricia Leahy-Warren and Mark Tyrrell) conducted five of these. Therefore, this School has contributed significantly to historical changes that have taken place in the nursing and midwifery profession at National level in Ireland.

Commission On Nursing- Authors of reports for the Commission-Ms. Patricia Leahy –Warren, Ms. Sarah Condell, Mr. Mark Tyrell, Dr. Eileen Savage, Ms. Maureen O’ Flynn with Dr. Geraldine Mc Carthy and Ms. Justice Mella Carroll

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