Introduction
The scope of practice summarizes the services a professional is allowed to perform in accordance with their license. Registered nurses’ scope of practice is defined by the American Nurses Association (ANA).
Discussion
According to ANA (2021), the scope of nursing practice defines registered nurses as individuals who have received appropriate education and title and maintain active licensure. Registered nurses are allowed to provide nursing services, characterized as the need for nursing knowledge, wisdom, care, leadership, education, or practice, to healthcare consumers who need information, advocacy, or care (ANA,2021). Registered nurses provide nursing with the use of professional means and methods to achieve positive health outcomes in healthcare consumers as their obligation to society. Defining the scope of practice is important for new graduate registered nurses as they can experience difficulties in the workplace where many functions and skills are mixed (Murray et al., 2019). Thus, registered nurses can perform administrative functions, such as developing care plans and care functions, such as wound care.
Conclusion
Regulatory bodies such as Community Health Accreditation Program (CHAP) are responsible for regulating the nursing practice and protecting patients’ safety. The agencies ensure nurses’ competence in health service provision by developing safety and quality care standards. Thus, CHAP’s standards of excellence for home and community care providers target the promotion of healthcare consumers’ safety by evaluating their progress in meeting the highest standards of care across the industry.
References
American Nurses Association. (2021). Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice (4th ed.). American Nurses Association.
Murray, M., Sundin, D., & Cope, V. (2019). New graduate nurses’ understanding and attitudes about patient safety upon transition to practice. The International Journal of Clinical Nursing, 28(13), 2543-2552. Web.