The Nursing and Midwifery Order 2001

Practice Committees

18.—(1) The members of each Practice Committee shall include registered professionals and other members, of whom at least one shall be a registered medical practitioner.

(2) The number of registered professionals on a Practice Committee may, but need not, exceed the number of other members on the Committee and shall not in any case exceed that number by more than one.

(3) The Chairman of the Committee shall be a Council member.

(4) No one shall be a member of more than one Practice Committee and shall not be both a Screener and a member of a Practice Committee.

(5) The Council shall, subject to other provisions in this Order, have regard when selecting non-Council members for a Practice Committee, to the guidance issued by the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

(6) The panel of a Practice Committee considering an allegation or taking any other action under Part V shall comprise at least three members who shall be selected with due regard to the former, current or proposed professional field of the person concerned as the case may be and to the nature of the matters in issue, provided that—

(a) at least one member is registered in that Part of the register in which, as the case may be, the person under consideration is or was registered or in respect of which he has made an application to be registered;

(b) there is at least one lay member, who shall not be a registered medical practitioner;

(c) where the health of the person is relevant to the case, there is at least one registered medical practitioner;

(d) subject to sub-paragraph (f), the panel shall comprise both registrant and lay members none of whom is a Council member and the number of registrant members may exceed the number of lay members but may not exceed them by more than one;

(e) no one who has been involved in the case in any other capacity may sit on the panel; and

(f) the person presiding may but need not be a member of the Council.

(7) Decisions of a Practice Committee shall be made by a majority vote of the members present and voting.

(8) In the event of a tie, the Chairman shall have an additional casting vote and in respect of a decision under Part V shall exercise his casting vote in favour of the person concerned.

(9) Except when it is performing functions under Part V a Practice Committee may exercise its powers even though there is a vacancy among its members.

(10) Apart from proceedings under Part V, no proceedings of a Practice Committee shall be invalidated by any defect in the appointment of a member.

(11) No person who is a member of the Council or a Committee by virtue of his membership of any profession may take part in any proceedings of a Practice Committee in any period during which he is the subject of any investigations, proceedings or a determination against him concerning his fitness to practise his profession.