Professional Nursing And State-Level Regulations Discussion Paper
Boards of Nursing (BONs) exist in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands. Similar entities may also exist for different regions. The mission of BONs is the protection of the public through the regulation of nursing practice. BONs put into practice state/region regulations for nurses that, among other things, lay out the requirements for licensure and define the scope of nursing practice in that state/region.
It can be a valuable exercise to compare regulations among various state/regional boards of nursing. Doing so can help share insights that could be useful should there be future changes in a state/region. In addition, nurses may find the need to be licensed in multiple states or regions. Professional Nursing And State-Level Regulations Discussion Paper
To Prepare:
Post a comparison of at least two APRN board of nursing regulations in your state/region with those of at least one other state/region. Describe how they may differ. Be specific and provide examples. Then, explain how the regulations you selected may apply to Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) who have legal authority to practice within the full scope of their education and experience. Provide at least one example of how APRNs may adhere to the two regulations you selected. Professional Nursing And State-Level Regulations Discussion Paper
Advanced nurse practice is guided by policies and principles that determine the conduct of advanced nursing professionals and the scope of practice for these professionals. The role of the board of nursing and regional professional boards is to enhance safety through enforcing compliance to the standards of care (Milstead & Short, 2019). California Board of Registered Nursing is one of the Board of Nursing I will use for comparison purposes for this discussion against the Alabama Board of Nursing. Both organizations are mandated to regulate the standards of nursing practice in their respective jurisdictions. Additionally, the multi-state agreement is the interstate organization that allows nursing professionals to practice in the 34 states listed under its jurisdiction. Therefore, the organization eliminates the repetitive need to apply for licensure in every state where the nurse practitioner wishes to practice. For instance, the two Boards of Nursing collaborate if a nurse working in Alabama wishes to practice in a state listed in the compact state; the nurse practitioner would be allowed to practice in these states and offer the required services according to the scope of practice or specialty (Alabama Board of Nursing , 2020). Since California is not listed as a compact state, the nurse practitioner would need endorsement sent directly from the initial state to the state where the nurse practitioner wishes to practice. Professional Nursing And State-Level Regulations Discussion Paper
The two boards differ in that an individual can only be allowed to practice at an advanced level after securing the registered nurse licensure before applying for the advanced practice registered nurse position. The nurse practitioner must obtain general reporting for the previous discipline before being licensed and certified as an advanced nurse practitioner. The reporting is essential, especially for clinical nurse specialists, nurse practitioners, midwives, and psychiatric and mental health nurse practitioners (California Board of Registered Nursing, 2019). On the other hand, a nurse practitioner seeking licensure in the compact state member from Alabama may not need the licensure in the intended state of practice; the individual needs proof of the license in the jurisdictional state within the compact community.
Regarding the practice authority and regulations, advanced nurse practitioners working in California must have a standardized protocol for practice, such as a collaborative agreement with the supervising physician. The protocol limits the scope of practice and minimizes the capacity of the advanced practice registered nurse to work independently and deliver services to individuals and populations (Bosse et al., 2017). On the other hand, advanced practice nurses in Alabama require annual certification for controlled substances to prescribe medications in schedules II, III, IV, and IV. The certificate indicates that advanced practitioners possess greater autonomy to practice independently than in California. Professional Nursing And State-Level Regulations Discussion Paper
References
Alabama Board of Nursing. (2020). Board information. Alabama.gov. https://www.abn.alabama.gov/
Bosse, J., Simmonds, K., Hanson, C., Pulcini, J., Dunphy, L., Vanhook, P., & Poghosyan, L. (2017). Position statement: Full practice authority for advanced practice registered nurses is necessary to transform primary care. Nursing Outlook, 65(6), 761–765. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2017.10.002
California Board of Registered Nursing. (2019). California Board of Registered Nursing. Ca.gov. https://www.rn.ca.gov/
Milstead, J. A., & Short, N. M. (2019). Health Policy and Politics: A Nurse’s Guide (6th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning. Professional Nursing And State-Level Regulations Discussion Paper