The Nursing Council is undertaking a review of the nurse practitioner scope of practice and prescribed qualifications.  The consultation is focused on the future requirements for the nurse practitioner scope of practice and qualifications.  It discusses the positioning of nurse practitioner in relation to projected health need and service delivery changes and the potential implications of the introduction of further registered nurse prescribing.

The Council is proposing changes to the nurse practitioner scope of practice to ensure it:

• remains safe, flexible and appropriate to meet health needs;

• adequately describes the health services the nurse practitioner provides; and

• sufficiently differentiates the nurse practitioner from advanced registered nurse roles.

The Council also wishes to consult on the educational preparation for nurse practitioners to explore:

• any changes it should make as a result of the proposed changes to the scope of practice including specifying programme outcomes,

• the impact of the proposed introduction of the postgraduate diploma in registered nurse prescribing for patients with long-term and common conditions, and

• whether it should specify clinical learning time within the education programme and if so, how much?

Feedback Due: 13 February 2015 Please forward your comments to Jill Clendon at jillc@nzno.org.nz. NZNO will collate these comments and submit to the Nursing Council.