The nurse licensure compact agreement establishes continuity in requirements for licensure which ensures public protection in nursing care. I was familiar with this as I live in a compact state (AR), but my original nursing license was from a non-compact state (NY-currently pending compact status). The benefits of this for the nurse is that practice options are open for movement to other states that are also enrolled in the nurse licensure compact agreement.
What I found interesting in the video was what happens when a nurse moves from a compact state to a non-compact state. A nurse must apply to the non-compact state for licensure BUT the previous compact license is no longer in effect (Nurse Licensure Compact, n.d.). I would think that for a non-compact state trying to recruit nurses, not being a part of the compact agreement would limit potential employees. For me, I would want to practice in a compact state and I would most likely re-evaluate a potential move to a non-compact state.
DQ 1: Identify at least two regulatory bodies, and your state’s nurse practice act, that specify certification, licensure requirements, or scope of practice for your specialty
NUR 513 Topic 2 DQ 1
Identify at least two regulatory bodies, and your state’s nurse practice act, that specify certification, licensure requirements, or scope of practice for your specialty. Discuss the way these influence the educational requirements and experiences for your specialty. Advanced practice registered nurses must incorporate the APRN consensus model in their response.
In your response to peers, discuss a specific guideline or change imposed by a regulating body or industry regulation and explain the how this affects your daily practice. Cite at least one source to support your response.
REPLY TO DISCUSSION
The Board of Registered Nursing is a state driven regulatory body associated with a large
array of business regarding details such as RN licensure, standards of practice and disciplinary actions (California Board of Registered Nursing. 2022). The California Nurse Practice Act encompasses the laws of California pertaining to elements within our field. It is updated every year and helps govern the innerworkings of the California Board of Nursing business and profession codes as well as the core regulations. (California Board of Registered Nursing. 2022). The federal regulatory process has many different initiatives for nurses and the healthcare system. One that is very important is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). The ACA addresses affordable insurance, affordable healthcare and medical innovation for low-income families (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. 2022).
These regulatory bodies strongly impact nursing practices, patient outcomes, and positive actions within the everchanging healthcare system (DeNisco & Barker, 2019). It is vital within the nursing profession to stay up to date on annual changes within our practice. The significance of different improvements influence nursing and healthcare by providing straight forward knowledge and definition of expectations required to maintain the high standard of care within the medical system. It is important for these entities to research and identify the disparities associated with different regions of the country to pinpoint specific community needs and actively combat unique inequalities and imbalances associated with all types of societies and cultures.
California Board of Registered Nursing. (2022). Nursing Practice Act. https://www.rn.ca.gov/practice/npa.shtml
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. (2022). About the Affordable Care Act. https://www.hhs.gov/healthcare/about-the-aca/index.html
DeNisco, S. M., & Barker, A. M. (Eds.). (2019). Advanced practice nursing: essential knowledge for the profession (4th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning. ISBN-13: 9781284176124
Also Check Out: DQ 2: Identify recommendations for nursing education you believe will be most effective or radical in creating change within the industry.
REPLY
Hi, Crystal, I agree with your discussion of the different roles of a nurse educator and a nurse practitioner. The
responsibilities and roles of these two types of nurses are different. The Nurse practitioner’s (NPs) responsibility, as you mentioned in your post, it is to “provide direct patient care” by “diagnosis and providing treatment” (American Nurses Association, 2022). The NP ethical guidelines are also different from the Nurse Educator’s; for example, the NP must ensure that the patient receives the health needed to improve their health condition by ensuring clear communication within them. In contrast, the Nurse educator must educate the student on the importance of following the code of ethics to provide excellent patient care to patients and families. References
American Nurses Association. (n.d.). About ANA. ANA. https://www.nursingworld.org/ana/about-ana/
REPLY
One nursing regulatory body (NRB) in the state of Georgia is the Georgia Board of Nursing under the Georgia Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger. The Georgia Board of Nursing is a member of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN), a not-for-profit organization made up of the NRBs from all 50 states, Washington D.C and four U.S. territories (National Council of State Boards of Nursing, n.d). Because nursing has such a key role in the health care system, it is vital that it is done in a safe, evidence-based, consistent manner. Each of the members of the NCSBN has a law called the Nurse Practice Act that explains in detail every aspect of nursing, including but not limited to what duties, responsibilities, educational requirements, licensing, and scope of practice are necessary to ensure that nursing is being practiced safely in their state or territory. Each nurse must function in a way that is in line with this law to maintain their license. Nursing regulatory bodies such as the Georgia Board of Nursing are responsible for enforcing the Georgia Registered Professional Nurse Practice Act.
Another nursing regulatory body that enforces the requirements of the Georgia Nurse Practice Act is the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS). Although ONS is a nursing organization that focuses on the specialty of oncology, it builds its specialty scope of practice on the foundation of the Nurse Practice Act of each state or territory. The Oncology Nursing scope and standards set minimal standards as well as requirements to become Oncology Nurse Certified (OCN). The Oncology Nursing scope and standards also provide initial and annual competencies to individual oncology nurses so that they can gain and/or improve their knowledge in the field of oncology ((Lubejko & Wilson, 2019)
The specialty of Public Health Nursing is regulated by the Georgia Department of Public Health Office of Nursing. The Georgia DPH Office of Nursing acts as a nursing regulatory body to ensuring that Public Health nurses practice in a way that is in line with the Georgia Nurse Practice Act, the Georgia Board of Nursing rules and regulations, and scope of practice by developing policies and procedures, and providing leadership, and assistance to public health nurses in their communities. (dph.georgia.gov, n.d)
References:
About NCSBN. NCSBN: Leading regulatory excellence. (n.d.). Retrieved August 13, 2022, from https://ncsbn.org/about.htm
Lubejko, B. G., & Wilson, B. J. (2019). Oncology nursing: Scope and standards of Practice. Oncology Nursing Society.
Office of Nursing. Georgia Department of Public Health. (n.d.). Retrieved August 13, 2022, from https://dph.georgia.gov/clinical-services/office-nursing
REPLY
Tuova, I never knew there was a regulatory body which governed Oncology! I think that is amazing and so very important given the prevalence of cancer in todays society and the unique speciality cancer requires in healthcare. I have a friend who works on an oncology unit who just became chemotherapy certified. She reported the exam was very challenging. I could appreciate why this exam would be necessary to verify competency in this area of nursing. Thank you for sharing.
In Kansas where I reside, the Kansas State Board Nursing recently authorized Nurse Practitioners (NP) to practice in the absence of a collaborative agreement alongside of a physician while practicing (Kansas State Board Nursing, 2022). One of these updated changes includes providing restructuring evidence based care to patients with the knowledge base of clinical skills and expertise, while providing care through patient advocacy (Kansas Administration Regulations, 2022). I feel this change allows the NP a greater ability to strengthen clinical judgment, confidence from education and training earned, as well as providing further patient care access.
Two regulatory bodies that shape the education and practice of nurse educators are the National League for Nursing (NLN) and the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN). The NLN provides the Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) certification in addition to professional development and education for nurse educators (National League for Nursing, n.d.). By providing a CNE certification that is available to nurses across the country, this helps to standardize the profession and education of nurse educators. While the CNE certification is not required for nurse educators, it provides a benchmark that is recognized nationwide for nursing educators.The ongoing educational resources provided by the NLN also help to elevate the profession by providing up to date information on relevant topics or changes in nursing practice that nurse educators need to be aware of.
The NCSBN is a worldwide organization of nursing regulatory bodies that dictate nursing licensure and practice in specific areas. The NCSBN provides research and programs that help to regulate nursing education programs, in addition to providing relevant educational resources for nurse educators (National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc., n.d.). The NCSBN recently conducted a study to evaluate how much simulation should be used in nursing programs and what the best practices are for this type of educational environment. There is also now a searchable tool on the NCSBN website that has compiled distance education requirements across the nation. Both of these resources are helpful in standardizing and guiding the practice of nurse educators. One of the first steps to standardizing nursing practice across the nation is to standardize nursing education, and the NCSBN provides excellent resources to assist with this. The NCSBN also encourages collaboration among all of the nursing regulatory bodies in the United States, which allows nurse educators to learn from one another and advance the profession by working together.
The New York State (NYS) nurse practice act states the scope of practice for the registered professional nurse, licensed practical nurse, nurse practitioner, and clinical nurse specialist in NYS (New York State Education Department, 2018). I find it interesting that the nurse practice act does not address the scope of other advanced practice nurses including certified nurse-midwives and certified registered nurse anesthetists in NYS. These areas are addressed in different articles of education law in NYS. As a future nursing educator in NYS, it is important to know the scope of practice for the nurses that I will be teaching. Nursing education programs in NYS have to be based around the educational requirements for each profession as defined in the NYS nurse practice act, so being familiar with this will be essential to my success as a nurse educator.
References
National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. (n.d.). Education. https://www.ncsbn.org/education.htm
National League for Nursing. (n.d.). Education & assessment. https://www.nln.org/education
New York State Education Department. (2018). Education law: Article 139, nursing. https://www.op.nysed.gov/prof/nurse/article139.htm
Unread
The nursing profession has evolved from simple housekeeping and general first aide duties into a profession that has a wide range of specialties with different levels of skills and education within the healthcare industry. In order to promote uniformity in the education requirements and regulatory requirements of all nurses, regulatory bodies were formed. Nursing Regulatory Bodies (NRB) were established by state and territorial governments to “protect the public’s health and welfare by overseeing and ensuring the safe practice of nursing” (NCSBN, 2023). Within each state and jurisdiction, the NRB enforces a law called The Nurse Practice Act. This law outlines and describes the qualifications for licensure, nursing titles that are allowed to be used, what a nurse is allowed to do, which is the scope of practice, and actions that can or will happen if the nurse does not follow the nursing law (NCSBN, 2023). Two regulatory bodies for healthcare within the state of Mississippi are the Mississippi Department of Health (MDH) and Mississippi State Board of Nursing (MSBN).
“The Mississippi Department of Health (MDH) establishes standards, recommendations and regulations for health and care facilities, and licenses facilities and practitioners of health-related professions that affect public health” (MDH, 2017). Although MDH provides professional licensure for certain areas of healthcare, it does not provide or regulate the licensure for Advanced Practice Nurses. The Nurse Practice Act under the Mississippi Board of Nursing provides qualifications, regulations, and scope of practice for advanced practice nursing.
There are 4 specialties of the APN. These specialties include Certified Nurse Practitioner, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, Certified Nurse Specialist, and Certified Nurse Midwife. The Mississippi Nurse Practice Act under the MSBN outlines the following practice requirements for APNs. The APN must practice according to the guidelines and standards of the National Certification Organization, practice in a collaborative/consultative relationship with a licensed physician whose practice is compatible with that of the APN, practice according to a board-approved protocol or practice guidelines, and APN may not write prescriptions for, dispense, or order the use of or administration of any schedule of controlled substances except as contained in this chapter (MSBN, 2017). Not only does the Nurse Practice Act outlines standards of practice, but it also regulates the nursing educational institutions.
My focus is on Nursing Informatics and it is not considered as and Advanced Practice Nurse role. Nursing Informatics is defined as a combination of nursing science, information science, and computer science by the American Nursing Informatics Association (Nation, J. & Wangia-Anderson, V., 2019). As with any other nursing roles, it still requires the knowledge of the nursing process and nursing practice, relevant regulatory mandates, promoting interoperability, and principles of quality/safety improvement. Due to the COVID pandemic, there was an increase need and use of technology to deliver care. Many healthcare providers, including APNs, were forced into virtual clinics and tele-health because of the increased need for isolation to prevent further spread of the virus. This caused an increased need for more and more healthcare practitioners to be educated in the areas of digital health concepts and services, and the different point-of-care technologies, and how to provide nursing care with the support of these tools. Nurses are the largest population of healthcare professionals and are at the forefront of the digital health era. Increasing education in Nursing Informatics, improves the nursing workforce’s readiness in making digital health a priority for the delivery of effective, safe, and efficient patient care with the support of existing and future technology resources.
National Council of State Boards of Nursing. (2023). About U.S. Nursing Regulatory Bodies. https://www.ncsbn.org/nursing-regulation/about-nursing-regulatory-bodies.page
Mississippi State Board of Health. (2017). Regulation and Licensure. https://msdh.ms.gov/page/30.html
Mississippi State Board of Nursing. (2017). Mississippi Nursing Practice Act. https://www.msbn.ms.gov/laws-rules/nursing-practice-act
Nation, J., & Wangia-Anderson, V. (2019). Applying The Data-Knowledge-Information-Wisdom Framework to A Usability Evaluation of Electronic Health Record System for Nursing Professionals. Online Journal of Nursing Informatics, 23,1.