Deciding whether to investigate fitness to practise or register entry allegations

We sometimes receive allegations that could either be described as allegations about a nurse or midwife’s fitness to practise or as allegations about whether their entry on the register is fraudulent or incorrect. We usually prioritise the possible allegation of incorrect or fraudulent entry.

We will only consider whether to investigate an allegation of impaired fitness to practise after we have assessed the case and decided that there is no allegation of incorrect of fraudulent entry. This is because we should investigate whether or not a person is entitled to practise as a nurse or midwife at all before we look at whether or not their fitness to practise may be impaired. It is also very important for public protection that members of the public can trust the information about who is listed as a nurse or midwife on our register.

Referring fraudulent or incorrect entry cases to the Investigating Committee

After investigating whether a nurse or midwife’s entry on the register is fraudulent or was made incorrectly, we refer the case to the Investigating Committee. The Investigating Committee makes a final decision on whether or not the material we gathered shows there is evidence to support an allegation of incorrect or fraudulent entry.

In making this decision we consider whether any of the information submitted, or which the Registrar took account of as part of the application process appears to be:

• deliberately misleading
• otherwise wrong or inaccurate.

We also assess whether it appears that the entry on the register was made by mistake.

In some circumstances, we may decide not to refer an allegation to the Investigating Committee. We are most likely to do this if:

• there is no suggestion that an entry was gained through fraud
• the error or inaccuracy in the application was trivial or unimportant
• the error or inaccuracy has since been corrected
• we have subsequently entered the nurse or midwife on the register based on correct information
• it is unlikely that the Investigating Committee would take any action if it were considering the allegation.