RN Competencies and Professional Responsibilities Quiz

Entry-Level Registered Nurse (RN) Competencies and Professional Responsibilities

• Entry-level RNs work within the registered nursing scope of practice and seek guidance when encountering situations outside their ability.
• They must have the skills and abilities to attain entry-level competencies and are prepared as generalists to practice safely, competently, and ethically in diverse settings.
• Entry-level RNs are educated at the baccalaureate level, with a strong foundation in nursing theory, health sciences, humanities, research, and ethics.
• They practice autonomously within legislation, practice standards, ethics, and scope of practice in their jurisdiction.
• Entry-level RNs apply critical thinking throughout all aspects of practice, organized under 9 roles including clinician, professional, communicator, collaborator, coordinator, leader, advocate, educator, and scholar.
• Licensing and registration of nurses are necessary to improve standards of practice and education, with the authority to remove those found to be incompetent or unethical from practice.
• Licensure is the exclusive legal right to practice a profession, while registration ensures a minimum level of safe practice and requires evidence of expanding knowledge and competence.
• Registration exams like the NCLEX-RN contribute to patient safety by testing entry-level knowledge necessary for safe care at the beginning of a nurse's career.
• The exams focus on areas such as pain management, medication administration, basic care, infection control, and confidentiality of patient information.
• Nurses have ethical and legal responsibility to maintain confidentiality and privacy of client health information, governed by provincial legislation such as PHIPA and PIPEDA.
• PHIPA permits sharing personal health information among healthcare team members, while PIPEDA requires organizations to obtain consent for collecting, using, or disclosing personal information and protect it with appropriate safeguards.
• Privacy and confidentiality belong to the patient, and confidentiality is the duty of the healthcare provider, with guidelines on maintaining them.

Nursing Organizations in Ontario and Canada

• The College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) outlines principles for ethical nursing practice, including respect, integrity, and public confidence.
• The Ontario Nurses Association (ONA) is a trade union established in 1973, advocating for safe environments, patient care, and equality.
• The Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (RNAO) is a professional association that fosters knowledge-based nursing practice, quality work environments, and healthy public policy.
• The Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) is the national professional voice of registered nurses, promoting nursing excellence and advocating for healthy public policy.
• The CNA is a professional federation of nursing associations across Canada, contributing to the health of Canadians and the advancement of nursing.
• The Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing (CASN) establishes national standards for nursing education and represents universities and colleges offering nursing programs.
• CASN promotes the advancement of nursing knowledge, facilitates integration of theory, research, and practice, and provides a national forum for nursing education and research.
• The International Council of Nurses (ICN) is a federation of over 130 national nursing organizations, including the Canadian Nurses' Association, with a mission to represent nursing worldwide and promote the wellbeing of nurses.
• Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) is an honor society of nursing with over 100,000 members and 600 chapters globally, dedicated to advancing knowledge, teaching, learning, and service in nursing.
• Entry-to-Practice (ETP) Competencies are defined by the CNO as the knowledge, skill, and judgment necessary for safe and ethical practice for all registered nurses in Ontario.
• ETP competencies ensure consistency and a standard level of competence for new graduate nurses across the country, as well as serving as the foundation for nursing practice and education programs.
• The ETP competencies are established for the protection of the public, practice reference, approval of nursing education programs, registration and membership requirements, legal reference, and continuing competence.