The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria has reopened the verification portal for nurses and midwives on its website.
Checks by our correspondent on the NMCN portal on Saturday showed that nurses and midwives can now submit verification requests.
Our correspondent confirmed that the verification portal was reopened on Friday.
When our correspondent checked the portal, it read, “Good news, verification requests are back online.
“Please note that henceforth expiration dates on renewal applications will be calculated based on the date you applied.”
Also, a nurse, Anthony Ijeoma at Nursingworld Nigeria, confirmed that the portal has been reopened.
Ijeoma commended the efforts of the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives for bringing the change to fruition.
“I also commend NMCN for listening to reason and reopening its verification portal for nurses within and outside the country,” he stated.
According to a reliable source, it was learnt that the sudden deactivation of the verification portal by the council in February plunged countless Nigerian nurses and midwives working abroad into turmoil.
Already, some nurses without the necessary verification from the NMCN find themselves in violation of visa conditions and employment laws, resulting in legal consequences.
Many nurses abroad, including those in the United Kingdom and the United States, have been forced to return to the country over the issue.
On February 7, the council released a circular on the guidelines for requesting verification of certificates for nurses and midwives in the country.
By the circular, nurses and midwives must have a minimum of two years post-qualification experience from the date of issuance of the permanent practicing licence, and the council shall request a letter of good standing from the chief executive officer of the applicant’s place(s) of work and the last nursing training institution attended and responses on these shall be addressed directly to the Registrar/CEO, NMCN, among others.