I am very concerned regarding the opening statement of this news bulletin and the term utilised in this sentence and within the document as a whole. What exactly is “top of their scope” and what does this mean?

Registered and Enrolled Nurses are required by law to work within their scope of practice. Under the HPCA Act, every nurse has a scope of practice – there is no “top” mentioned nor defined within NCNZ definitions and terminology. By using words like “top” are we subjecting nurses to judgements of their practice? What does top mean? With ‘top’, there must be a ‘bottom’ and no nurse working safely and competently within their scope of practice deserves to be at risk of this judgement.

‘Expanding practice’ or ‘advancing practice’ are terms used by the Nursing Council of New Zealand (NCNZ) when referring to increasing the role of the RN. The NCNZ has stated “Registered nurses who have developed their expertise may expand their practice beyond the established contemporary or ‘traditional’ scope of practice to include new technology, increasingly autonomous roles, management of health consumers with chronic conditions and through activities previously considered within the scope of other health professionals” (NCNZ, 2011, p9).

I would suggest that the Minister of Health needs to refer to the correct terminology when discussing the practice of his 53,000-strong nursing workforce.

Reference:
Nursing Council of New Zealand [NCNZ] (May, 2011). Guideline: Expanded practice for Registered Nurses.