All new nurses must be graduates

LONDON (Reuters) - All new nurses will need to have a degree within four years under government plans to improve the quality of patient care, the Department of Health said on Thursday.

Nursing students will study for three to four years for a degree, compared to two to three years for the diploma they must have today. Just over a quarter of the National Health Service's 315,000 nurses in England currently have a degree.

"Degree-level education will provide new nurses with the decision-making skills they need to make high-level judgements," Health Minister Ann Keen said in a statement.

Previous attempts to raise educational requirements have led to accusations it will make nurses "too clever to care" and unwilling to perform basic tasks like emptying bedpans.

Chief Nursing Officer Christine Beasley said nurses will still do the full range of tasks, but stressed their training should reflect their growing responsibility.

"What you can do now is very, very different than what was happening even 10 years ago," she told BBC radio. "The knowledge that you need to have to make sure you are that really skilled, caring nurse increases because of the complexity."

The Royal College of Nursing described the move as an "important and historic" development, but said it must not be allowed to restrict access to the nursing profession.

"We must ensure that the door to nursing continues to be as wide as possible," said RCN Chief Executive Peter Carter.

(Reporting by Peter Griffiths; Editing by Steve Addison)