Professional Nursing and State-Level Regulations Essay

Responding to David Register

Regardless of the vast amount of evidence and data in support of full practice authority, California is among the twelve restrictive states that still continue to deny APRNs the right to practice independently to the full level of their license.  Other states include Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, Massachusetts, Missouri, Michigan, Virginia, Texas, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and South Carolina (Peterson, 2017). Professional Nursing and State-Level Regulations Essay

NPs in California   are required to work under physician supervision and must have standardized protocols. According to Phillips (2020), NPs function under standardized protocols when carrying out medical acts. The protocols are developed and approved through collaboration between the supervising physician, the NP and the healthcare facility where the NP works.  Regarding prescriptive authority, NPs may order or furnish devices or drugs, entailing schedule two to five controlled substances, when the devices or drugs furnished are in accordance with a standardized procedure and when NPs are granted separate   authority by the board of registered nursing.

California was the first state to enact state-mandated nurse to patient staffing standards in 2004. By February 2013,   the District of Columbia and 14 more states had adopted policies connected to safe nurse staffing, but California is the only state with a law on mandated minimum ratios. The law as aimed at improving patient safety and patient outcomes (Leigh et al., 2015)

Assembly Bill 890 is the latest legislation in California intended to authorize NPs to practice independently by eradicating the requirement for physician supervision in the current law. The bill was signed into law on September 29, 2020 by Governor Newsom Gavin. However, there are numerous steps left before the bill is implemented and California Medical Association is strongly opposed to the implementation of the law. As indicated by Peterson (2017), in restrictive states, medical boards have financial power and significant influence to push their agendas through. Professional Nursing and State-Level Regulations Essay