Nurse / Midwife Prescribing

The course is first and foremost about making a difference, and has provided the opportunity for nurses and midwives to expand their roles to meet the needs of patients and service users within their area of expertise. The course will also enhance your professional capacity so that services are more patient-focused, thereby delivering better outcomes.

The Certificate is a six-month full-time course consisting of 11 days of theory and a practical element of 96 hours achieved through mentorship in the clinical setting. The clinical element of the course is provided in your specific clinical practice area with instruction and supervision from a dedicated medical practitioner who will act as your mentor.

Course Practicalities
This course is student-centred. Methods of teaching range from online activities to lectures, tutorials and laboratory work. The course will develop self-directed learning through assignment writing, case-study presentation and observed structured long examination record examination (OSLER).

Students take 30 credits as follows:

Module Title Credits
GP5000 Systematic Assessment and Evaluation in Patient Care 10
NU5048 Professional, Ethical and Legal Practice, Communication Aspects of Prescribing and Clinical Practicum 10
PF5011 Holistic Approach to Prescribing Medicinal Products and Clinical Practicum 10

For further information see the UCC Postgraduate Calendar (Certificate in Nursing - Nurse/Midwife Prescribing).

Modules

Further details on the modules listed above can be found in our Book of Modules. Any modules listed above are indicative of the current set of modules for this course but are subject to change from year to year.

University Calendar

You can find the full academic content for the current year of any given course in our University Calendar.

Entry Requirements

Registration as a nurse or midwife on the live register of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI).

Minimum of 3 years post-registration clinical experience (the required clinical practice experience must have been gained within the past 5 years with at least one year in the area in which prescribing is proposed and excludes time spent undertaking further post-registration programmes).

Possession of up-to-date competencies recognised at Level 8 of the NQAI framework.

Demonstration of continuous professional development and ability to study at Level 8.

Support from employer and completed Site Declaration Form, signed by the Director of Nursing/Midwifery/Public Health.

Nomination and confirmation of a designated medical practitioner mentor (completed Site Self-Declaration Form, signed by the Medical
Practitioner/Mentor) who will provide the student with supervision,
support, and opportunities including shadowing opportunities.

The nurse or midwife must contact the Director of Nursing/Midwifery/Public Health to discuss the identified need for nurse and midwife prescribing in their area/organisation. In addition, consideration needs to be given to developing the nurse and midwife prescribing initiative in relation to a number of issues including, legislative and professional practice requirements and standards, clinical governance structures, the scope of practice, clinical competency, mentoring arrangements, multidisciplinary partnership and the individual's ability to undertake the education programme and capability to meet the requirements of the new role and the capacity to drive and develop the new initiative safely.

The nurse or midwife must seek the approval of their Director of Nursing/Midwifery/Public Health to apply for the education programme. A nurse or midwife must satisfy the criteria as determined by the Higher Education Institution and the Implementation Group on Nurse/Midwife Prescribing as set out in the entry requirements.

For Applicants with Qualifications Completed Outside of Ireland
Applicants must meet the required entry academic grade, equivalent to Irish requirements. For more information see our Qualification Comparison page.

International/Non-EU Applicants
For full details of the non-EU application procedure visit our how to apply pages for international students.

In UCC, we use the term programme and course interchangeably to describe what a person has registered to study in UCC and its constituent colleges, schools, and departments.

Note that not all courses are open to international/non-EU applicants, please check the fact file above. For more information contact the International Office.

English Language Requirements
Applicants that are non-native speakers of the English language must meet the university-approved English language requirements. Please visit our PG English Language Requirements page for more information.

How Do I Apply
1. Check Dates: Check the opening and closing dates for the application process in the fact file boxes at the top of the page.

For Irish and EU applicants we operate a rounds system and you can check the rounds closing dates here.
Note that not all our programmes are subject to the rounds system so check the opening and closing dates for your specific programme in the fact file boxes above.

2. Gather Documents: Scanned copies of supporting documents have to be uploaded to the UCC online application portal and include:

Original qualification documents listed on your application including transcripts of results from institutions other than UCC.
Any supplementary items requested for your course if required.

3. Apply Online: Apply online via the UCC online application portal. Note the majority of our courses have a non-refundable €50 application fee.

Any questions? Use our web enquiry form to contact us.

Additional Requirements (All Applicants)
Please note you will be required to provide additional information as part of the online application process for this programme. This will include the following:

You may enter the details of professional or voluntary positions held. We strongly encourage you to complete this section with all relevant work experiences that will support your application.
Please describe your motivation and readiness for this programme.

In addition to your previously declared qualifications, please outline any additional academic courses, self-learning and professional training relevant to this programme.

You must be employed by an approved hospital and upload a letter of consent from the hospital of employment.

Please upload certification of current registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI).

Potential applicants will also be requested to complete the following forms and upload to the application portal once completed: SDF Nurse Midwife Prescribing Cert 2023

Please enter the names and email addresses of 2 referees.

Deferrals
Deferrals are not permitted on this course.

6 months full-time.

Skills and Careers Information
Nurse/Midwife Prescribing offers the opportunity to develop critical thinking skills and a knowledge base to inform evidence-based practice.