The Nursing Professions Act introduces numerous changes to nursing training. Nationally standardised frameworks are now in place to offer guidance on the development of curricula and training plans to training providers and schools of nursing. Other provisions contained within the law include regulations on initial training at institutes of higher education and on the recognition of professional qualifications acquired abroad. This issue of BWP looks at how these reforms will change nursing training and at how support can be provided for practical implementation.
The adoption of the Nursing Professions Act in July 2017 instigated a re-regulation of nursing which aimed to create a generalist and nationally standardised form of training. In December 2018, a Specialist Commission set up by the Federal Ministry of Health and the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth commenced work on the development of skeleton plans for theoretical and practical training. These have now been available since August 2019.
This interview with Professor Gertrud Hundenborn, Chair of the Specialist Commission, and the body’s Deputy Chair Professor Ingrid Darmann-Finck sheds light on the work conducted thus far and on forthcoming activities.
The Nursing Professions Act (PflBG) has created a new legal basis for the training of nursing professionals and also contains new tasks for BIBB. This is the first time that BIBB has been assigned a remit in an area of training that lies outside the BBiG/HwO. This article highlights particular structural features of nursing training programmes compared to training in the dual system in accordance with the BBiG/HwO. It concludes by stating the new tasks of BIBB and by outlining prospects for the further development of the vocational training.
The training pathways and tasks of nursing teachers are different to those of conventionally trained teaching staff. Their theoretical and practical teaching is action related, and they support practical training on the ground. Teachers and instructors working in nursing have a high degree of responsibility for the quality of nursing training. What is required from them? What can support them? And which changes are occurring as a result of the Nursing Professions Act? This article provides explanations and answers.
Increasing complexity of nursing care arrangements and the current reform to the Nursing Professions Act in Germany form a context which gives rise to the question of what the “right” mix of qualifications in the nursing and social care sectors should be. Austria and Switzerland implemented reforms in nursing training several years ago. The International Council of Nurses (ICN) also proposes a graduated qualifications system. This article presents skill sets in terms of formal qualifications in the German speaking countries that are linked with defined task profiles. It concludes by highlighting commonalities and differences.
Due to an ageing population and a growing demand for healthcare provision, pressure is rising internationally to increase the efficiency of the healthcare system and to keep costs under control. New healthcare professions, including the occupation of Advanced Practice Nurse (APN), are being introduced within this context. This article looks at the competencies, roles and fields of activity covered by this occupational profile and considers the contribution it makes to healthcare provision both from an international and a Swiss perspective. It also highlights the areas in which the profession of APN differs from that of other specialised nurses and concludes by indicating the significance of mandatory regulations relating to quality assurance.
The numbers of applications for professional recognition in the healthcare professions are rising continually and have been heading up the statistics in this regard for years. This is highly welcome given the shortage of skilled nursing staff in Germany, but applicants seeking to negotiate the recognition procedure face a long route. This article clarifies the legal foundations underlying the process, looks at which challenges are being produced by the new Nursing Professions Act and presents possible ways towards a solution.
This article looks at the initial experiences of employers with persons who have achieved a professional qualification after completing pilot programmes of higher education study in nursing in North Rhine-Westphalia. It outlines selected results on individual fields of deployment and factors leading to successful career entry and concludes by highlighting associated implications in this regard and by identifying areas where action is required. The research results have been achieved within the scope of a more comprehensive study into graduates of eleven pilot courses of study in five healthcare professions (VAMOS) in North Rhine-Westphalia.
The requirements contained in the new frameworks for nursing training include competencies relating to inter-professional thinking and action, and the ability to cope with unavoidable work-related stress. However, no consistent modelling of such competencies has taken place thus far. The aim of the EKGe project is to deliver theoretical and empirical foundations in this regard.
In light of the severe shortage of qualified workers in social care, this article investigates the extent to which support for continuing training from the employer can help encourage staff to remain in their roles and thus help stem the tide of departure from the sector. A survey of employees in Switzerland shows that continuing training projects receive generous support from employers but that funding for continuing training programmes held outside the company has a particularly large impact on encouraging staff to stay in the sector and in their occupation. Suggestions for the social care sector are made on the basis of the results.
This article explores how advisors at job centres, chambers and youth migration services are able to advise and assist young refugees with a right to remain in the country in the development of vocational training prospects. Against the background of the existing general institutional and organisational general conditions, it becomes clear that advisors specifically open up options for vocational training for young refugees. The article concludes with a recommendation that vocational orientation and training preparation guidance and support for young refugees should be put in place.
Part-time vocational education and training in the dual system was regulated by law in 2005. Annual reporting has shown that very few part-time training contracts have thus far been concluded within the dual system. But how does vocational education and training unfold if trainees pursue it on a part-time basis? This article uses the Vocational Education and Training Statistics to analyse the success of part-time training contracts in 2018.
Occupations
Markus Bretschneider; Marc Casper; Christian Melzig
The topic of sustainability in regulatory instruments continues to gain significance in the wake of the shifts in ecological balances and social disadvantages that have developed as a result of the actions of mankind. A systematic approach aimed at identifying sustainability in occupationally specific terms has, however, been absent thus far. A topic and competence grid aimed at rendering relevant aspects of sustainability visible has been developed and piloted within the scope of the BMBF’s main funding focus “Vocational education and training for sustainable development” (Berufsbildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung, BBNE). The modernisation of the training occupation of housekeeper is used as an example to outline how this grid can be deployed.
The consequences of climate change are exerting a major influence on vegetation and are changing the face of our woods and forests. All forest tree species have suffered as a result of the extremes of weather experienced over recent years. Instances of damage caused by heat, storms, and pests such as the bark beetle are increasing. At the same time, our awareness of woodland as a place of recreation is growing. This draws the attention to the occupational profile of forest manager, a field in which requirements are becoming ever more extensive and complex.