Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if the Nursing and Midwifery Council will include mandatory bowel and bladder care training for pre- and post-registration nurses in the new revised curriculum.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) is the independent body responsible for the regulation of nurses and midwives in the United Kingdom. It is responsible for the way it discharges its statutory duties including setting standards of education, training, conduct and performance, so that nurses and midwives can deliver high quality healthcare throughout their careers. Accordingly, it is for the NMC to decide what it will include in its standards of proficiency. Its role as a professional regulator does not include developing or revising a curriculum. That is the role of education institutions.

The Code for nurses and midwives requires that they must prioritise people, practise effectively, preserve safety and promote professionalism and trust. This includes practising in line with the best available evidence. The Code also states that nurses and midwives must treat people as individuals and uphold their dignity by delivering the fundamentals of care effectively. The fundamentals of care include nutrition, hydration, bladder and bowel care, physical handling and making sure that those receiving care are kept in clean and hygienic conditions.