Two key principles
The Health Professions Act and Regulation support and clarify two key principles that BCCNM believes uphold safe nursing practice:
- The scope of practice reflects the reality of registered nurse practice.
- Clear responsibility and accountability among health professionals is fundamental to the provision of safe and ethical client care by competent nurses.
The Regulation supports the first principle by reflecting common practice of registered nurses. It supports the second principle by clarifying responsibility and accountability of registered nurses in their practice. For example, the Regulation makes clear that certain restricted activities may be carried out by registered nurses within autonomous scope of practice, while other restricted activities require a client-specific order from a listed health professional.