55.— (1) A person (including the Board) may make a complaint to the F32[chief executive officer] concerning a registered nurse or registered midwife on one or more than one of the grounds of—

(a) professional misconduct,

(b) poor professional performance,

(c) non-compliance with a code of professional conduct,

(d) a relevant medical disability,

(e) a failure to comply with a relevant condition,

F32[(ea) the imposition on the nurse or midwife of—

(i) a prohibition against him or her providing one or more than one kind of health or social care in the State or another jurisdiction, or

(ii) a restriction on his or her ability to provide one or more than one kind of health or social care in the State or another jurisdiction,]

(f) a failure to comply with an undertaking or to take any action specified in a consent given in response to a request under F32[section 57A(1) or 65(1)],

(g) a contravention of a provision of this Act (including a provision of any regulations or rules made under this Act),

F33[(ga) a failure to comply with regulations made under section 13(2) of the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013,]

(h) an irregularity in relation to the custody, prescription or supply of a controlled drug under the Misuse of Drugs Acts 1977 and 1984 or another drug that is likely to be abused, or

(i) a conviction in the State for an offence triable on indictment or a conviction outside the State for an offence consisting of acts or omissions that, if done or made in the State, would constitute an offence triable on indictment.

(2) A complaint may be made on the grounds of professional misconduct or poor professional performance notwithstanding that the matter to which the complaint relates occurred outside the State.

F34[(2A) ...]

F35[(2B) Subject to subsection (2C), where the chief executive officer receives a complaint, he or she shall comply with section 56A in respect of the complaint unless

(a) he or she is satisfied that the complaint is not made in good faith, or

(b) he or she is satisfied that the complaint is frivolous or vexatious.

(2C) Subsection (2B) shall not apply to a complaint where the Board is the complainant.

(2D) Where the chief executive officer decides that a complaint falls within subsection (2B)(a) or (b), he or she shall give notice in writing to the complainant (and, if the chief executive officer is of the opinion that it is in the interests of the complainant, or the registered nurse or registered midwife to whom the complaint relates, or of both, to do so, to such nurse or midwife) of the decision and the reasons for the decision.]

(3) The F36[chief executive officer] shall make reasonable efforts to ensure that—

(a) the complainant is kept informed of all decisions made under this Part and, if applicable, Parts 8 and 9 by F36[the chief executive officer, the Preliminary Proceedings Committee], any other committee, or the Board, in relation to the complaint concerned,

F36[(b) the authorised officers act expeditiously, and,]

(c) complaints are processed in a timely manner.

F37[(3A) The chief executive officer may, in relation to the complaint concerned, inform, in addition to the complainant, other parties to the proceedings under this Act concerning the complaint, of the decisions referred to in subsection (3)(a).]

(4) F38[…]

(5) Where a complaint falls within subsection (1)(i), the F39[chief executive officer] shall immediately refer the complaint to the Board.

(6) The Board shall consider a complaint referred to it under subsection (5) and—

(a) if it is of the opinion that—

(i) the nature of the offence that is the subject of the complaint or the circumstances in which the offence was committed render the nurse or midwife F40[a person who has permanently ceased to be a fit and proper person to continue to practise nursing or midwifery in the State], and

(ii) it is in the public interest that it take action immediately under this paragraph,

the Board shall decide under section 69(1) to cancel the nurse’s or midwife’s registration under section 69(1)(f), and

(b) in any other case, the Board shall refer the complaint back to the F40[chief executive officer and direct that officer] to deal with the complaint as if the complaint had never been so referred.

(7) Nothing in subsection (6) shall be construed to—

(a) prejudice the generality of section 58, or

(b) limit the range of the measures which the Board may decide to take under section 69 with regard to a registered nurse or registered midwife in any case where the Board has taken the action referred to in subsection (6)(b).

(8) The F41[chief executive officer] shall refuse to consider or further consider a complaint in respect of a matter which occurred before the repeal of section 38 of the Act of 1985 by section 4 if the matter was the subject of an application under Part V of the Act of 1985.

F42[(8A) A complaint made before the commencement of section 159 of the Regulated Professions (Health and Social Care) (Amendment) Act 2020 which has not been disposed of or otherwise dealt with under this Act before that commencement shall be disposed of or otherwise dealt with under this Act as this Act was in force immediately before that commencement.]

(9) A complaint is a protected disclosure under the Health Act 2004 (as amended by the Health Act 2007).