South African Nursing Council

Welcome to the South African Nursing Council Web site.  This site concentrates on the setting and maintaining of nursing education and practice standards.  The information is intended to appeal to a wide audience - from the serious researcher to those who are considering a career in nursing.

Practising nurses will find the site most useful. You will be able to find the latest and most up-to-date information about your profession here.

International visitors are welcome - particularly those who are doing international nursing research and also those who are considering coming to work as nurses in South Africa.

Nomination of members to serve on the 15th Council

The nomination process has now ended and the evaluation of nominations will now take place.  Once new Council members are appointed, the information will be published here.

Latest News from S A Nursing Council:

INTERNATIONAL NURSES DAY 2013

12 May 2013

Message from the Chairperson of the South African Nursing Council

International Nurses day is celebrated annually on 12th May to commemorate the birth of Florence Nightingale who made a significant contribution towards the nursing profession.  This day also presents nurses globally with an opportunity to remember and reflect on the meaning and value of their contribution in the delivery of health care.

The theme for 2013 is Closing the Gap: the Millennium Development Goals: 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

The South African Nursing Council, as the statutory body has developed a range of enabling instruments for nurses to take a lead towards the achievement of the United Nations health related Millennium Development Goals (4, 5 and 6) which focuses on the reducing child mortality, improving maternal health and combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases.

As carers in the coalface of disease; pain; helplessness and despair, I am also grateful that working together we have indeed made remarkable strides in many areas including the notable successes in reversing the tide of HIV and AIDS.

Today our country under the leadership guidance of Honourable President Jacob Zuma is hailed as a shining example having succeeded in putting more than 1, 7 million people on life saving Antiretroviral treatment; on bringing in more than 20 million people to test for HIV and most remarkably reducing the mother to child transmission rate from 8% in 2008 to 3.5 per cent in 2010 and to 2.7 per cent in 2011.  One thing is certain, the above could not have been achieved without the involvement of appropriately skilled committed and compassionate nurses.

Today as we celebrate this all important day we also need to be mindful of the fact that our country has a responsibility as directed by the African Union under the auspices of the Campaign on Accelerated Reduction of Maternal and Child Mortality in Africa (CARMMA) to ensure that indeed, "No Woman Should Die While Giving Life!"  Again midwives of our country have the expertise, skills and clinical acumen to ensure that both the mother and the new-bon baby come out alive and well to be celebrated as a gift to their families.

Our work as nurses in this country is never going to be an easy one due to the fact that the South African health system is predominantly nurse driven.  On behalf of SANC, I salute and commend those nurses who regardless of all challenges encountered within the health care system, still prioritize the wellbeing of the patients.  Thus contributing the long and healthy life for all.

Issued by

The Chairperson: Dr JN Makhanya
South African Nursing Council

Nursing Council warns public to beware of unaccredited nursing programmes

3 April 2013

South African Nursing Council has once again issued a press release warning the public to beware of illegal "nursing training" that is not accredited by the Council or that is being conducted by institutions that have not been accredited by the Council.

Click here to see a copy of the press release.

New and Amended Regulations Published

19 March 2013

Five new regulations have been published in the Gazette on 8 March 2013.  Three are for the new nursing programmes, one for the accreditation of nursing education institutions and one regarding the fees and fines payable to Council.  Also published was a few small amendments to the transitional arrangements of the "Register" regulations (R.195 of 19 February 2008), together with a Government Notice necessary to implement these.   For full details, see circular 2/2013.

14 February 2013

Consultation on Competencies for the Nurse/Midwife Specialist

The South African Nursing Council is in the process of developing competencies (scope of practice) for the Advanced Practice Nurses (Nurse/Midwife specialists). These competencies are meant to define roles and responsibilities of nurse specialist within their respective areas of specialization and will help define the educational preparation necessary for such roles and responsibilities. 

To this end, the Council has had consultative workshops with representatives of nurse specialists in the defined areas of specialization, most of whom were drawn from identifiable/existing National Associations/Societies for nursing specializations. Nurse specialists were drawn from both education and practice. Draft sets of competencies have been generated from this process. 

The Council values the input of other nurse specialists who have not been part of this process and therefore requests the participation of specialists who are involved in the following areas:
     *  Community Health Nursing
     *  Nephrology Nursing
     *  Occupational Health Nursing (OHN)
     *  Ophthalmic Nursing
     *  Orthopaedic Nursing
     *  Paediatric Nursing

The necessary documents have been posted on a secure drop box website and the response form is given both as a PDF (print for hand written responses) or a Word document (if you wish to fill in the form on computer).  You will need an secure link to access the forms.  The links will be sent to specialists whose contact details SANC has on file.  If you are involved in one of the above and you do not receive the link by SMS or email by end of business today, you can request the links by email from:
     vmthethwa@sanc.co.za 

Please include your SANC number, full names and cellphone number in the email.  This will enable us to update your communication details.

TAKE NOTE that the closing date for comments to be received is 28 February 2013.

Your cooperation in this matter will be greatly appreciated. 

What you will find on the Council website

The following is a brief outline of what you will find on this website.

About SANC tells you all about the Nursing Council - the Vision, Mission and Objectives of the Council, the members that make up the Council, the various committees of Council and the members that serve on each, etc.

Complaints deals with the process of investigating matters which have been reported to the Nursing Council and which may constitute "unprofessional conduct". You can find out how to lodge a complaint (if you have one) and the process which will follow the receipt of your complaint.  If you find yourself in the unfortunate position of having a complaint against you, this information will help you to understand the whole process - including your own rights.

Education Institutions contains a full list of all the Nursing Education Institutions accredited by the Nursing Council and their addresses (arranged by province) so that you can find one near by OR in a place where you would like to study.

eRegister is a link to the Nursing Council electronic register where you can confirm the qualifications of registered practitioners.

Examinations deals with those examinations which are conducted by the Nursing Council .  If you are a  candidate who is planning to write or who has written a Council examination, you will obviously be interested in this information.

News is where you will find all the latest decisions of the Nursing Council , new policies, proposed policies and discussion documents on which the Council would like your comments. You should visit these pages if you want to keep informed and to be involved in shaping the future of nursing in South Africa.

Policies contains some of the Nursing Council policies and position papers that are published for general information.

Presentations contains some of the Nursing Council presentations delivered at various events.  Delegates may find this useful material to supplement the knowlege gained during the event.

Publications contains the full texts of official publications which are available from the Nursing Council.  These include the Nursing Act, regulations, teaching guides and teaching policies of the Council. Although you are welcome to print and use copies of these documents, it is recommended that you refer to them on-line as you will then be sure to obtain the very latest information.

Services gives details of the services provided by the Nursing Council and how much each costs.  You can also download various official forms from these pages - this will ensure that you always use the current version of the form.  This is also the correct place for you to find out about the various options available for paying annual fees.

Statistics is for the inquisitive and the researcher.  Ever wanted to know how many nurses qualify each year?  This is where you will find all the information you need.

Supply Chain is where suppliers or prospective suppliers can download the form used to apply for registration as a supplier on the Supplier Database.  You can also find out about current tenders and download tender forms and information.

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