Strengthening nursing and midwifery regulations and standards in Africa

Abstract

Health professional boards have a mandate to regulate the training, licensure and practice of health workers; however, regulatory bodies, professional associations and academic institutions have not been widely involved in efforts to advance health worker education and practice. The African Health Profession Regulatory Collaborative (ARC) for Nurses and Midwives is a four-year initiative aimed at strengthening regional standards, regulatory frameworks, organizational capacity, and nursing leadership, in the East, Central and Southern Africa (ESCA) region. ARC convenes regional meetings of nursing and midwifery leaders, awards grants to support national regulation improvement projects, and provides technical assistance to country teams to address identified regulatory issues. During year one, ARC convened three regional meetings, awarded five grants to support regulation improvement projects, and provided targeted technical assistance to eight country teams. As ARC continues to evaluate its proof of concept, key strengths that have emerged include an investment in health systems strengthening, strong country ownership, and the value of south-to-south collaboration. This article describes an approach to strengthening nursing and midwifery regulation through collaborative improvement cycles that could serve as a model for strengthening health workforce regulation among additional cadres and regions.