Nurse Practice Acts

Registered Nurse (RN) Professional nurse who has completed a two-year associate degree (AD.) in nursing, received a three-year diploma in nursing from a hospital, or completed a four-year baccalaureate degree in nursing (B.S.N.) passed a state board examination and is licensed by the state under its Nurse Practice Act. 

Nurse Practice Acts. The Nurse Practice Acts are laws established by the individual states to delineate the scope of practice for nurses and protect the... 

Registered Nurses. Registered nurses are considered professional practitioners and perform their roles under the Nurse Practice Act of the state where they work. RNs must graduate from an accredited school of nursing and pass a state board examination. RNs are licensed by the state in which they reside. RNs can expect to make a median salary of 62,450. 

A STATE PRACTICE ACT/BOARD OF PHARMACY PROVISION Trudy Hamilton, Pharm.D., is a licensed pharmacist and is currently the manager of a hospital pharmacy department. In the state where Dr. Hamilton is licensed, nonpharmacist personnel are prohibited by both statute (the state pharmacy practice act) and state board of pharmacy regulation from engaging in activities defined as the practice of pharmacy. The specific activities that fall within the definition of the practice of pharmacy are limited to being personally performed by licensed pharmacists only. Such activities include counseling patients about their medications and responding to drug information requests from other health care professionals (e.g., physicians and nurses). 

When may it be ethically justifiable for a nurse to act outside her or his scope of practice ... 

Since 9/11, Americans feel an increased vulnerability to terrorism or exposure to acts of war, including the use of biological and chemical agents. As evident here, previous, and current, research conducted by military nurses lends an initial understanding of nursing practice in austere environments, primarily during wartime. To date, however, there has been less research into biochemical defense for both the provider and the patient under these conditions. More research is needed so that nurses and other health care providers can provide quality care for patients, families, and communities in disaster situations. 

Epidemiological Clues to a Biological Event. With awareness of the baseline data for their practice setting, nurses should be alert for unusual patterns of disease or health-related indicators. Representative examples of unusual patterns of diseases that might suggest a deliberate bioterrorist act are presented in Table 22.1 (U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases [USAMRIID], 2005 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS], 2001). 

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