Upgraded NMC Competency Test Centre opens at University of Northampton

HEMEL HEMPSTEAD, U.K. - April 25, 2017 - PRLog -- Having been the first approved centre there are now 2 further approved centres in the UK where nurses and midwives who completed their training outside of the EU or EEA are able to undertake an Objective Structure Clinical Examination (OSCE) before they can be eligible to join the NMC register. This is a practical test to ensure that nurses' skills are assessed in a robust and objective way, in order to protect the public. To ensure full compliance, the new centre was fitted out with sound and vision recording facilities and synchronous digital countdown clocks.

With an estimated shortage of 20,000 nurses in the NHS and 96% of hospitals reporting a shortage of nurses and midwives, the NHS has increasingly had to rely on recruiting nurses from abroad. Last year more than a quarter of new recruits came from overseas. To cope with this shortage of UK and EU trained nurses, more than 3,000 nurses have undertaken the NMC's Test of Competence for nurses and midwives at The University of Northampton since 2014.  The growing demand for Competency Testing completely outstripped supply, and the University of Northampton reinvested to upgrade the former facility to a new 18 bay examination facility at their Innovation Centre.

Northampton-based Adaptive IT was contracted to fit out the Test Centre to ensure examinations can be conducted competently and impartially.  Each of the 18 Test 'stations' was fitted with CCTV and sound so each examination can be recorded for quality assurance purposes or should the test result be challenged.

All examinations are conducted within strict time limitations. Students are given five minutes to read a brief and must then act out a series of six clinical scenarios which nurses and midwives are likely to encounter when they assess, plan, carry out and evaluate care for patients. Each of the scenarios must be completed within a strict 15 minute window, so Adaptive IT installed 18 pairs of Bodet's synchronous countdown clocks.

Adaptive IT's commercial director, Jonathan White commented, "As part of the upgrade, we decided that Bodet's Style 5S LED digital clocks would fit in well with the contemporary style of the Innovation Centre. The 5 cm LED display is easy to read, and the green light is more calming in a test environment especially as it can be adjusted for brightness depending on the lighting conditions.  From a practical perspective, the clocks can display time of day or be used as accurate countdown timers, and can be paused or reset easily."

A Style LED clock was fitted in each of the 18 examination stations so that examinees can see clearly how much time they have left to complete each test. The Competency Test Centre also has two invigilator stations, each monitoring nine of the examination stations.  The time displayed at each station is synchronised with a duplicate clock in the invigilator centre so the invigilator can verify the examinations are completed competently and within the time limit.

White added, "Although it has only just opened, this brand new facility at the University of Northampton is running at full capacity, and is playing an important role helping to ensure that every nurse and midwife has the professional skills to provide the highest quality of care for the ever growing number  of patients."

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Date    10 April 2017


Editors Notes
High resolution images available on request


More about Bodet Ltd
Bodet Ltd is the British subsidiary of French-based Bodet Group which have been leading the market in time measurement products since the 1860s. The Group have five subsidiaries across Europe exporting to 60 countries and have expanded from clock-making into IT-based time and attendance, access control, school class change systems and sports scoreboards.

The Bodet Group has over 35,000 clients including Fedex, Serco, TalkTalk and the European Parliament as well as state and independent schools and individual public sector institutions such as DVLA and NHS.

For more information visit http://www.bodet.co.uk