Scope of registration: Glossary of terms

Page last updated: 22 February 2024

Glossary of terms

Armed services

Schedule 2 paragraph 10(2) of the 2014 Regulations defines the armed services as the naval, military and air forces of the Crown, including the reserve forces. (These are currently the British Army, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force.)

Designated body

A “designated body” means a body prescribed by Regulation 4 of the Medical Profession (Responsible Officers) Regulations 2010.

Healthcare professional (other than in relation to the regulated activity of Treatment of disease, disorder or injury)

A healthcare professional is a person registered with any of the following professional bodies, who is permitted by that body to provide or supervise the provision of the regulated activity:

Health and Care Professions Council
Nursing and Midwifery Council
General Medical Council
General Dental Council
General Pharmaceutical Council
General Osteopathic Council
General Optical Council
General Chiropractic Council
Social Work England

The term healthcare professional also includes any professional who is included within a 'Section 60' order of the Health Act 1999. A medical practitioner is a doctor fully registered with the General Medical Council, who permits them to provide or supervise the provision of the regulated activity.

Listed healthcare professional in relation to the regulated activity of Treatment of disease, disorder or injury

For the purpose of this regulated activity only, a listed healthcare professional is defined under Schedule 1 paragraph 4(4) of the 2014 Regulations as a:

medical practitioner
dental practitioner
dental hygienist
dental therapist
dental nurse
dental technician
orthodontic therapist
nurse
midwife
biomedical scientist
clinical scientist
operating department practitioner
paramedic
radiographer

The relevant registration body permits these healthcare professionals to provide or supervise the activity being carried out under this regulated activity.

Local anaesthesia

Local anaesthesia is defined as any form of anaesthesia other than general or regional anaesthesia.

Nursing associate

The role of nursing associate was introduced in England from January 2019 to provide care and support for people using services, bridging the gap between health and care assistants and registered nurses, and enabling registered nurses to focus on more complex clinical duties. It is a stand-alone, professional role that is regulated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

Although intended to be part of the nursing team, nursing associates are not registered nurses and are not a listed healthcare professional for the purposes of carrying on the regulated activity of Treatment of disease, disorder or injury.

Patient Group Directions (PGDs)

Patient Group Directions (PGDs) allow specified health professionals to supply and/or administer medicines to specific groups of patients without a prescription or an instruction from a prescriber. PGDs are therefore not suitable for medicines that need frequent adjustments to dosage or continual monitoring. Healthcare professionals who act as signatories for authorising PGDs are responsible for ensuring the clinical and pharmaceutical content are accurate and supported by best available evidence. The healthcare professional supplying or administering the medicine is responsible for assessing the patient and making the decision to treat under the PGD.

Personal care

The definition of personal care covers:

Physical assistance given to a person in connection with:
- eating or drinking (including the administration of parenteral nutrition)
- toileting (including in relation to menstruation)
- washing or bathing
- dressing
- oral care
- the care of skin, hair and nails (except for nail care provided by a chiropodist or podiatrist)
Prompting and supervising a person to do any of the types of personal care listed above, where that person is unable to make a decision for themselves about performing such an activity without being prompted and supervised.

Prompting and supervision

Prompting and supervision is where staff prompt and directly supervise a person when they are carrying out the actions defined as personal care and where they are unable to make a decision for themselves about performing such an activity without someone prompting them. Supervision will normally include direct observation of the action as it is carried out or checking on how it is being carried out. It will not normally include merely encouraging someone to perform the activity or checking at some point afterwards whether it has been done. This means that in any service where staff are prompting and supervising a person who is unable to make a decision for themselves as they perform those activities listed, the service will be classed as providing personal care.

Related third party

The definition of a related third party under Schedule 1, paragraph 1(4) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 in relation to the regulated activity of Personal care is:

an individual with parental responsibility for a child who will receive personal care services.
an individual who has power of attorney or other lawful authority to make arrangements on behalf of the person who will be receiving personal care services.
a group of individuals described in (a) or (b) who make arrangements on behalf of one or more people who will be receiving personal care services.
a trust established to provide services to meet the health or social care needs of a named individual.

Shared lives schemes

Shared lives schemes support adults with a learning disability, mental health problem or other needs that make it harder for them to live on their own. They are run by a local authority or other person either as a profit or non-profit scheme. The schemes recruit and train adult Shared lives carers, make arrangements to match a person with an approved Shared lives carer, and support and monitor placements. These types of scheme are referred to as Shared lives, Shared life schemes or Homeshare programmes. They were previously referred to as Adult Placement Schemes. See more details about Shared lives schemes on NHS.UK.

Shared lives carers

Shared lives carers are people who provide accommodation and other support for an adult person in their own home (the placement). They may or may not provide the regulated activity of Personal care. It is the Shared lives scheme and not the individual carers who must be registered for the regulated activity of Personal care.

Triage

Triage is determining the urgency of diseases, disorders or injuries to decide the order of treatment for people and where to treat them.

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The regulated activities