There are multiple resources to inform a nurse of his or her legal scope of practice, as well as standards of practice in their profession. The American Nurses Association (2010) published the Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice, the second edition in 2010, providing guidelines to all nurses regardless of their role or specialty (p.2). The purpose of this discussion is to define the nurse’s scope of practice according to the American Nurses Association, as well as define my state nurse’s scope of practice. Finally, I will successfully apply the nurse’s scope of practice to a clinical scenario. The American Nurses Association defines the scope of practice as the “who,” “what,” “where,” “when,” “why,” and “how” of nursing (ANA, 2010). …show more content…
West Virginia’s Scope of Practice (2015) defines the nurse’s scope of practice in much the same manner, as the American Nurses Association. However, the West Virginia Nurse Practice Act provides three sections with multiple questions to ask yourself. The three sections are “Define the Issue,” Review Existing Laws, Policies, and Standards of Nursing Practice,” and “Making a Decision” (WV RN Board, 2015). The final statement under the section entitled “Making a Decision” states nurses must ask themselves, how prepared he or she is to accept the consequences of their actions (WV RN Board, 2015).
An example of applying the nurse’s scope of practice in my experience is treating a patient with sudden onset of crushing chest pain. A patient admitted to our Invasive Cardiovascular Unit with a diagnosis of unstable angina began having chest pain while waiting to have a cardiac catheterization. The patient had orders in place as a chest pain protocol. I first obtained the patient's description of the pain, while initiating oxygen, obtaining the patient's vital signs, and noting the patient was pale, diaphoretic and short of breath. I assured the
this scenario to provide rich discussion of “how to” practically incorporate this into the nurse’s practice.
As a registered nurse practicing in the state of California I am responsible for practicing within my states legal regulations and nursing scope of practice. My concern for the welfare of the sick and injured allows me to practice ethical provisions of nursing. These are required if I am to carry out competent and effective nursing care. Nursing encompasses the prevention of illness, the alleviation of suffering, and the protection, promotion, and restoration of health in the care of individuals. Therefore, as health care professionals we must be familiar with the different philosophical forces, ethical principles, theories and values that influence nursing. At the same time, we must be respectful to our patient’s
Nursing is one of the most intimate health care professions. They are connected to their patients as soon as they are admitted into their care right through until they are discharged into someone else’s care. With this, nurses have a strict professional identity and scope of practice to prevent a nurse from over stepping their professional boundaries. A nurses’ duty of care does go beyond the average healthcare professional but still does not impair the
Nursing is a profession that requires specialized training, knowledge, skills, and judgment to foster an independent decision making. Practicing nursing is a right granted by the state to safeguard those in need of care and efficient nursing practice is substantiated by the state Nurse Practice Act (NPA). The NPA is ratified by each state based on set guidelines and passed by the state legislature (Russell, 2012). The NPA serves as a corner stone in regulating the duties and responsibilities of the professional nurse. The NPA is founded on set guidelines, however, the states’ board of nursing (BON) has the authority to modify the laws and regulations to fit the desired practice expectations set forth (Russell, 2012). The state of Virginia (VA), where this writer currently practices, has laws and regulations that govern the nursing practice of the Registered Nurse (RN) and the Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS). The purpose of this paper is to discuss the similarities and differences between the role of the RN and the advanced practice nurse as well as to identify if the Virginia NPA identifies the role of an infection prevention nurse specialist.
In this paper I will be informing on the scope of practice or the job description for a licensed practical nurse which includes medication administration and documentation just to name a few. I will also be discussing the future problems in in which licensed practical nurses with have to deal with in practice. And certifications that licensed practical nurses are able to obtain.
The aim of this study is to provide a detailed account of the nursing care for a patient who is experiencing a breakdown in health. One aspect of their care will be discussed in relation to the nursing process. The model used to provide an individualised programme of care will be discussed and critically analysed.
It is important to know that the task a nurse performs is within the scope of practice. So that a nurse can perform his/her task in a permitted way safely.
The purpose of this post is to discuss the nurse’s scope of practice. The American Nurses Association (ANA) has established guidelines to provide nurses a safe parameter to work within, while also protecting the patient. These laws are based on the competency, knowledge, judgment, and skills required by nurses in order to provide safe care for the public (National Council of State Boards of Nursing, 2015). It is imperative that nurses know their scope of practice within their state to avoid being charged with a violation of the Nurse Practice Act (Wilkinson & Treas, 2011). I will be discussing my states scope of practice in this posting.
Nurses play many roles in the healthcare field, can have many duties to fulfill under their licensure. It is important for a nurse of any degree, or licenses to know all of the duties that can be performed under their scope of practice. Olin (2012) states, “Scopes of practice are the same for every nurse at a basic level and very different by specialty.” Therefore, it is important to understand the scope of practice, that the nurse is licensed for. A nurse has many roles under the scope of practice that the nurse is licensed under. There are times when a nurse is asked to perform a task that isn’t under the nurse’s scope of practice and guidelines, and it is very important not to fulfill the task at hand if it
Each of the United States develops standards of care distinguishing nursing roles and competencies. Chapter 6, Section 2725 of California’s Nurse Practice Act defines the nursing role in patient care as independently interpreting the patient’s condition, behavior, abnormalities, and judging
A nurse is given an opportunity to help patients, either if its by helping them through a very serious sickness or just helping a patient get to the bathroom on time, or a time when happiness is overfilling the room and a child is being born. Registered nurses provide a wide variety of patient care services (Mitchell, p.12). A Nurse must always know where to begin and where to stop, as any other career in the health field there is always something that cannot be done by everyone but only the certified person, a nurse must always remain inside her scope of practice to prevent any misunderstandings. A nurse must also follow a code of ethics , the code of ethics of the American Association of Medical Assistants states that a nurse should at all times render service with full respect and dignity of humanity, respect confidential information obtained by a patients file, uphold the honor and high principles the profession and accept its discipline, and last but not least always want to improve her services to better serve the health and well being of the community. (Mitchell, p.65).
Since the inception of the Nurse Practitioner (NP) role in the 1960s, NPs have thrived in the delivery of primary healthcare and nurse case management. Despite patient satisfaction with NPs ' style of care, nurses have been critical of NPs, while physicians have been threatened by NP encroachment on MD practice. Balancing assessment, diagnosis, and treatment with caring defines NPs ' success as primary care providers. Understand the role and Scope of Practice of NPs is sometimes difficult for some to understand. The purpose of this paper is to define the role and history of NP, compare and contrast licensure versus certifications, understand NP Scope Of Practice and Standards of Care, discuss how the State Practice Acts regulate FNP practice, discuss credentialing and privileging, and differentiate between legislative and regulatory processes.
Nurses are constantly challenged by changes which occur in their practice environment and are under the influence of internal or external factors. Due to the increased complexity of the health system, nowadays nurses are faced with ethical and legal decisions and often come across dilemmas regarding patient care. From this perspective a good question to be raised would be whether or not nurses have the necessary background, knowledge and skills to make appropriate legal and ethical decisions. Even though most nursing programs cover the ethical and moral issues in health care, it is questionable if new nurses have the depth of knowledge and understanding of these issues and apply them in their practice
Nursing is one of the most trusted professions in the community. This means that nurses are trusted to enter into therapeutic relationships that adhere to the concept of patient care physically, mentally and ethically. The therapeutic relationship that is created is built on the professional knowledge and skills of the nurse and the patient trusting in the nurse’s ability to care for them. Professional boundaries are an intricate aspect of a nurse’s daily work. These boundaries are based on trust, respect and the appropriate use of power. Breaches can be classified as boundary crossings, boundary violations or sexual misconduct. Breaches of boundaries lead to violations of a nurse’s professional responsibility. Nurses must maintain
These impose severe constrictions on the ability of the nurse to move forward or advance into the areas of practice where traditional nursing practices were not allowed {Institute of Medicine, 2010}. However with the increase in the number of nurses graduating with advance degrees in nursing; the situation is changing. These well educated nurses are leading the charge to confront the complex issues that the rapidly changing health care situation presents. Regulatory barriers must be lifted so that nurses can practice within their scope in order to be reimbursed by private insurance for the services they provide. These changes can be done through the federal and state legislators as well as supervisory agencies and bodies such as congress and licensing regulatory boards. The IOM also recommends that nurses will expand their scope of practice and increase their responsibility through teaching and counseling of patients. {Institute of Medicine,2010}. The use of Advance Practice Registered Nurses and Physician Assistant in providing primary care services will decrease wait time and increase patient satisfaction. The high turnover of nurses transitioning from school to practice also affects the quality of care. These nurses do not have enough experience to make decisions in patient care.{Institute of Medicine,2010}.The IOM and JCAHO{2012} report supports the recommendations for the introduction of nursing residency