Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Act 2016
Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Act 2016
2016 anaw 5
An Act of the National Assembly for Wales to make provision about Local Health Boards and NHS Trusts in Wales establishing nurse staffing levels.
[21 March 2016]
Having been passed by the National Assembly for Wales and having received the assent of Her Majesty, it is enacted as follows:
1 Nurse staffing levels
(1) In Part 2 of the national health service (wales) act 2006 (c.42) (health service bodies), in Chapter 4 (misc ellaneous), before section 26 insert—
“Nursing services
25A Duty to have regard to providing sufficient nurses
(1) Subsection (2) applies where a Local Health Board is considering the extent of provision of nursing services for its area necessary to meet all reasonable requirements.
(2) The Local Health Board must have regard to the importance of—
(a) providing sufficient nurses to allow the nurses time to care for patients sensitively, and
(b) where securing the provision of nursing services, ensuring that there are sufficient nurses to allow the nurses time to care for patients sensitively.
(3) Where an NHS Trust in Wales provides nursing services it must provide those services to such extent as it considers necessary to meet all reasonable requirements; and subsection (4) applies where an NHS Trust in Wales is considering the extent of provision of nursing services.
(4) The NHS Trust must have regard to the importance of—
(a) providing sufficient nurses to allow the nurses time to care for patients sensitively, and
(b) where securing the provision of nursing services, ensuring that there are sufficient nurses to allow the nurses time to care for patients sensitively.
(5) For the purposes of having regard to the importance of providing sufficient nurses to allow the nurses time to care for patients sensitively, a Local Health Board or NHS Trust in Wales must (among other things) undertake workforce planning (including planning the recruitment, retention, education and training of nurses).
(6) In this section, and in sections 25B to 25E, references to—
(a) a nurse providing care for patients include the provision of care by a person other than a nurse acting under the supervision of, or discharging duties delegated to the person by, a nurse;
(b) a “nurse†mean a registered nurse;
(c) an “NHS Trust in Wales†mean an NHS trust all or most of whose hospitals, establishments and facilities are situated in Wales.
Nurse staffing levels
25B Duty to calculate and take steps to maintain nurse staffing levels
(1) Where a Local Health Board or NHS Trust in Wales provides nursing services in a situation to which this section applies, it must—
(a) designate a person or a description of person to calculate the number of nurses appropriate to provide care to patients that meets all reasonable requirements in that situation (the “nurse staffing levelâ€),
(b) take all reasonable steps to maintain the nurse staffing level, and
(c) make arrangements for the purpose of informing...
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