CLEAR

Law Society of England and Wales unveils report on regulation of legal services

The Hunt Review of Legal Services published earlier this week makes 88 recommendations concerning the regulation of legal services in England and Wales.  Among these are a call for the regulation of will-writers and claims handlers, robust internal governance processes, and the highest professional standards.

Legal regulation overview.

NCSBN: three new research briefs

The National Council of State Boards of Nusing (NCSBN) has announced the publication of three new briefs: 2008 Knowledge of Newly Licensed Registered Nurses Survey, 2008 RN Practice Analysis: Linking the NCLEX-RN Examination to Practice and 2007 Nurse Licensee Volume and NCLEX Examination Statistics. Read the briefs.

US: 2010 SOC classification system framework

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has published the framework for the 2010 Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) which contains 840 detailed occupations under 461 broader occupational groupings. Among the changes are the creation of a new category, Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Directors, which replaces the former Funeral Directors entry. The next major review and revision of the SOC is expected to begin in 2013, in preparation for a 2018 edition. Read more.

Canada: health profession reports released

The Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) has released five reports detailing the supply, distribution, migration, education, demographic trends and work patterns for seven major health professions. These are physicians, registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, registered psychiatric nurses, occupational therapists, physiotherapists and pharmacists. Read more.

UK: RCN calls for needlestick injury policy

In Needlestick Injury in 2008 the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) calls on the government, regulators and employers to introduce needlestick policies. The report found that nearly half of all nurses responding were injured by a needle previously used on a patient. 

US: report on auditing profession

The Final Report of the Advisory Committee on the Auditing Profession to the U.S. Department of the Treasury is the first major study of the U.S. auditing profession since enactment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Its recommendations include encouraging the states to substantially adopt the mobility provisions of the Uniform Accountancy Act, updating accounting certification examinations to reflect practice in global capital markets, and requiring regular and formal roundtable meetings of regulators and other governmental enforcement bodies.

West Virginia: Marriage and Family Therapy

Forty-eight states regulate the specific practice of Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT), 31 through an umbrella board according to Special Report: Marriage and Family Therapy from the West Virginia Legislative Auditor. Using neighboring states as examples, the report says the creation of an umbrella licensing board for MFTs, Professional Counselors, and Social Workers will result in lower licensing fees, but the regulation of multiple professions may create new administrative or regulatory challenges. Current data on MFT regulation is included for all states.

NBER Paper: The Prevalence and Effects of Occupational Licensing

A new paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) suggests that as of 2006, 29 percent of the U.S. workforce was required to hold an occupational license from a government agency. The paper, by Morris Kleiner at the University of Minnesota, and Alan Krueger at Princeton University, suggests those with higher levels of education are more likely to work in jobs requiring a license. The report also estimates that licensing has an impact of about 15 percent on wages.

A copy of the report is available for a small charge from NBER.

ABA: papers mark Canons of Professional Ethics centennial

The American Bar Association has commissioned eight papers to celebrate the centennial  of its Canons of Professional Ethics. Titles include Between a Rock and a Hard Place: The Future of Self-Regulation – Canada between the United States and the English/Australian Experience and How Things Have Changed: Contrasting the Regulatory Environments of the Canons and the Model Rules. Read the entire series.

UK: no need for new medical regulator if current system is used properly

The Health Committee of the House of Commons has issued Modernising Medical Careers Third Report of Session 2007–08. Volume 1 contains the report proper which concludes in part that the Department of Health is too involved in the implementation of the controversial medical specialties reform process. Among other things, the department should "reduce its direct involvement with policy implementation, ceding control to Postgraduate Deaneries, Royal Colleges and employers." Further, proper use of the existing bodies will make it unnecessary to establish a new medical coordinating regulatory body as proposed in earlier reports. Volume II contains the written evidence received by the committee prior to mid-November 2007, Volume III the oral and written evidence received after that date. In the absence of a 2008 UK-wide approach, Scotland departed from the decisions made in England and established its own recruitment website.