<p>The proposal for mandatory continuing education in the form of five study days every three years for every nurse practitioner is perhaps one of the most controversial recommendations of the Post-registration Education and Practice (PREP) Report (1). It would appear that the main motivating factor for including Recommendation 5 in the report may have been to act as a safeguard against professional obsolescence and incompetence among those who subscribe to the view that basic nurse education has fully prepared them for a lifetime of practice. Indeed, Jarvis (2) argues that continuing education is essential to good practice and basic professional education is no longer sufficient for a lifetime of safe practice. Elsewhere, Barker (3) has suggested that professional knowledge has a half-life of about 2.5 years before it becomes outmoded or obsolete.</p>