Facts: the requirements to be a registered nurse
The following requirements apply in order to have the right to use the professional title nurse upon application:
1. Have an education with a focus on care and social care from upper secondary school or municipal adult education.
2. Has acquired a competence that corresponds to that achieved through such training as referred to in 1.
An applicant who has an education with a focus on care and social care must receive proof of the right to use the professional title assistant nurse if the applicant has passed grades of at least: 1,350 upper secondary school credits in subjects, on courses or from high school or community work with a focus on care and care, 100 high school credits in Swedish or Swedish as a second language, and 50 high school credits in social studies (for those who start their education after July 1).
Work as a nurse or in a related profession can also add weight.
Source: National Board of Health and Welfare
In 2020, there were just under 180,000 people working as assistant nurses in the country. In addition, there are another couple of hundred thousand people in related professions such as treatment assistance and care assistants, who may apply for the protected professional title.
The National Board of Health and Welfare, which handles the applications for the new protected professional title, has received a large number of cases since the beginning of the month.
So far, up to and including 10:00 a.m. Friday morning, the agency has received 35,326 applications and issued 3,998 certificates.
“Could be longer”
The National Board of Health and Welfare has been preparing for two years for the large amount of applications and around 70 people are working on cases. But today it is now unclear how long it takes to get your certificate issued.
— This is a new area where the National Board of Health and Welfare has established new activities. In the past, it has not been possible to apply for proof of a protected professional title as assistant nurse, says Marika Lingonblad-Öhlund, head of unit at the National Board of Health and Welfare, to TT.
She points out that tens of thousands of people stood in the queue.
“Given the large amount of applications within such a short time, the waiting time may be longer for some time to come,” explains Lingonblad-Öhlund.
She points out, however, that the authority sees that the pace of applications is slowing down.
“A challenge”
According to the National Board of Health and Welfare, the applications are handled in turn order and they can take a different amount of time to process depending, among other things, on which documents are to be reviewed.
In addition, the authority points out that some cases may be more complex than others:
— It depends on a variety of factors when it comes to assessing whether the applicant meets the criteria to be able to obtain a certificate of protected occupational title for assistant nurse. Nursing education has looked different over the years and it can be a challenge, explains Marika Lingonblad-Öhlund.