APRN Laws and Their Effects on Nursing

Boards of Nursing (BONs) exist in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands. Similar entities may also exist for different regions. The mission of BONs is the protection of the public through the regulation of nursing practice. BONs put into practice state/region regulations for nurses that, among other things, lay out the requirements for licensure and define the scope of nursing practice in that state/region.

It can be a valuable exercise to compare regulations among various state/regional boards of nursing. Doing so can help share insights that could be useful should there be future changes in a state/region. In addition, nurses may find the need to be licensed in multiple states or regions.

To Prepare:

Review the Resources and reflect on the mission of state/regional boards of nursing as the protection of the public through the regulation of nursing practice.

Consider how key regulations may impact nursing practice.

Review key regulations for nursing practice of your state’s/region’s board of nursing and those of at least one other state/region and select at least two APRN regulations to focus on for this Discussion.

Post a comparison of at least two APRN board of nursing regulations in your state/region with those of at least one other state/region. Describe how they may differ. Be specific and provide examples. Then, explain how the regulations you selected may apply to Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) who have legal authority to practice within the full scope of their education and experience. Provide at least one example of how APRNs may adhere to the two regulations you selected.

I live in Tennessee and compare it with Florida.

Resources to use:

Milstead, J. A., & Short, N. M. (2019). Health policy and politics: A nurse's guide (6th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Chapter 4, “Government Response: Regulation” (pp. 57–84)

American Nurses Association. (n.d.). ANA enterpriseLinks to an external site.. 

Bosse, J., Simmonds, K., Hanson, C., Pulcini, J., Dunphy, L., Vanhook, P., & Poghosyan, L. (2017). Position statement: Full practice authority for advanced practice registered nurses is necessary to transform primary careLinks to an external site.. Nursing Outlook, 65(6), 761–765.

Halm, M. A. (2018). Evaluating the impact of EBP education: Development of a modified Fresno test for acute care nursing Download Evaluating the impact of EBP education: Development of a modified Fresno test for acute care nursing. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 15(4), 272–280. 

National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN)Links to an external site.. (n.d.). 

Neff, D. F., Yoon, S. H., Steiner, R. L., Bumbach, M. D., Everhart, D., & Harman J. S. (2018). The impact of nurse practitioner regulations on population access to careLinks to an external site.. Nursing Outlook, 66(4), 379–385.

Peterson, C., Adams, S. A., & DeMuro, P. R. (2015). mHealth: Don’t forget all the stakeholders in the business caseLinks to an external site.. Medicine 2.0, 4(2), e4.