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10 marks of the 100 in Part B, which runs for 150 minutes.
Platform 5 puts you in charge of something. A shift that is short-staffed, a colleague whose practice worries you, a task to hand over, a student to supervise. The questions ask how a registered nurse leads, not how they cope.
What this section asks about
Delegation and supervision, and the scope of practice of everyone in the team
Prioritising and organising the care of a group of people
Supporting and supervising students, and giving constructive feedback
Managing conflict and challenging the practice of others
Evaluating the quality of care given by other members of the team
Using digital systems to record and share information
Where the marks go
10 marks of the 100 in Part B, which runs for 150 minutes. The NMC splits this section across the levels of Bloom's taxonomy:
Remember and understand: 4
Apply and analyse: 3
Evaluate and create: 3
Where candidates lose marks
Escalating instead of acting, or acting instead of escalating. The question usually signals which is needed.
Delegating by task rather than by competence. What matters is whether that person is trained and competent for it.
Avoiding the difficult conversation with a colleague. Raising it directly and supportively is usually the first step.
Sample questions
From our bank, with the explanation as a student sees it. These particular questions are kept out of the mock papers, so reading them here does not use anything up.
Sample 1 of 2
A 58-year-old woman recovering from major abdominal surgery develops new-onset tachypnoea, tachycardia, and a mild temperature rise. The nurse needs to objectively quantify her physiological deterioration to determine escalation urgency. Which clinical assessment tool should the nurse complete?
Select one answer.
ANational Early Warning Score 2Answer
BMalnutrition Universal Screening Tool
CWaterlow pressure ulcer risk assessment
D4AT rapid assessment for delirium
Why
Calculating the National Early Warning Score 2 objectively grades physiological derangement across multiple vital signs to trigger the correct clinical escalation pathway. The 4AT rapid assessment tool would instead be selected if the patient presented with acute confusion, fluctuating alertness, and agitation suggestive of delirium.
NMC Standards of Proficiency Platform 5
Sample 2 of 2
A 68-year-old patient recovering from an acute ischaemic stroke is now medically stable and preparing for discharge home. Which interdisciplinary team member should be requested to assess functional independence in washing and dressing, and provide adaptive equipment?
Select one answer.
ASpecialist physiotherapist
BSpecialist clinical pharmacist
CSpecialist tissue viability nurse
DSpecialist occupational therapistAnswer
Why
The assessment of functional independence in activities of daily living such as washing and dressing, along with the provision of adaptive equipment, sits within the distinct scope of practice of an occupational therapist. A physiotherapist would be indicated instead if the primary requirement were chest clearance or physical mobility rehabilitation.
NMC Standards of Proficiency Platform 5
The proficiency statements behind this section
Questions in this section are written against the NMC's Future Nurse standards. These are the 12 statements it draws from. You are not expected to memorise them, and they are worth reading once so the language on the paper is familiar. The ones marked are patient safety proficiencies, which every paper has to reach a minimum of.
5.1Understand the principles of effective leadership, management, group and organisational dynamics and culture and apply these to team working and decision-making
5.2Understand and apply the principles of human factors, environmental factors and strength-based approaches when working in teams
5.3Understand the principles and application of processes for performance management and how these apply to the nursing team
5.4Demonstrate an understanding of the roles, responsibilities and scope of practice of all members of the nursing and interdisciplinary team and how to make best use of the contributions of others involved in providing care
5.5Safely and effectively lead and manage the nursing care of a group of people, demonstrating appropriate prioritisation, delegation and assignment of care responsibilities to others involved in providing care
5.6Exhibit leadership potential by demonstrating an ability to guide, support and motivate individuals and interact confidently with other members of the care team
5.7Demonstrate the ability to monitor and evaluate the quality of care delivered by others in the team and lay carers
5.8Support and supervise students in the delivery of nursing care, promoting reflection and providing constructive feedback, and evaluating and documenting their performance
5.9Demonstrate the ability to challenge and provide constructive feedback about care delivered by others in the team, and support them to identify and agree individual learning needs (see also 5.3)
5.10Contribute to supervision and team reflection activities to promote improvements in practice and services
5.11Effectively and responsibly use a range of digital technologies to access, input, share and apply information and data within teams and between agencies
5.12Understand the mechanisms that can be used to influence organisational change and public policy, demonstrating the development of political awareness and skills
Questions people ask
Why is leadership tested at the point of registration?
Registered nurses delegate, supervise and lead from their first shift. The Future Nurse standards make it one of the seven platforms.
What is the difference between delegation and abdication?
Accountability. When you delegate, you remain accountable for the decision to delegate and for checking the task was done, even though the person doing it is accountable for their own actions.
Practise this section
Practice is filtered by section, so you can work on this one on its own. Every account gets 10 new questions a day without a card.