Exploring Advanced Nursing Practice

This assignment delves into the multifaceted realm of advanced nursing practice within Australia. It examines the evolving landscape of roles and responsibilities, exploring topics such as nurse practitioner prescribing practices, comparisons between specialty and registered nurse standards, and the impact of international perspectives on regulation. The assignment also sheds light on the barriers and enablers encountered by advanced nurses in diverse settings, including general practice.

Running head: INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 1
Introduction to nursing profession
Name
Institution

INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 2
Introduction
A nurse is a medical practitioner who visits patient each and every time more than any
other person. He or she is in position to check and monitor the illness of the patients for all the
period in the hospital till the time of discharge (Carney, 2016). In many cases, nurses in Australia
have been found guilty of misconduct. Nurse practice needs lots of care and due diligence on the
client. Nurse misconduct varies on the nature of the act. Some misconduct arises due to
unavoidable circumstances or even unawareness. Contrarily, some misconducts are done
deliberately with a goal of achieving something (Yildiz et al., 2014). For instance, some nurses
may conceal drugs in the aim of selling them and give the patient under dose.
Depending on the act, the NCSBN, National Council of midwives and nurses have the
authority to revisit the matter and award the judgment accordingly. In place of practice, a nurse is
held responsible for the threatening actions done to patients and public interest under his or her
watch (Cashin et al, .2016). The paper will analyze a case where a nurse finds that the fellow
nurse is practicing misconduct. It will outline the immediate actions, regulations on the matter
and the ethical and legal implications of the matter.
Immediate actions required
A nurse pointing out that they are practicing patient care and yet they are not doing it is a
breach of the code of conduct. It implies that the nurse went against the set rules and regulations
which are set by National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) and as a fellow nurse, I
have an immediate role to play to prevent them from further breach of the law (Parahoo, 2014).

INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 3
First and for most, I will remind them of the set regulations that guide the nurse practices so that
they might not be guilty about my move.
Secondly, I will inform them to refrain from the act to avoid consequences from
NCSBN, clients through court and any other interested body. Being a criminal act, I believe if
they do not adhere to my advice, I will not condone their practices. I will take the proactive
measure of informing relevant authorities of their acts so that life of patients cannot be put at risk
anymore (Tobiano et al., 2017). It is interesting to note that nursing calls for services to people
and there are no any shortcut to achieve the ultimate goal of saving lives of patients. According
to the law on nurses’ practice, it is illegal to witness a colleague practicing misconduct without
any relevant action. It, therefore, means that I would be held responsible if the actions of my
colleague continue to pose risks to the public.
Regulations of Australian registered nurse
There are many regulations in Australia which guide the practice of registered nurse. The
role of a nurse is to make sure that the standard of their practice is in line with the standards set
by the profession with an aim of assisting people to be safe (Chang & Daly, 2015). However, the
key role of the nurses is to offer competent and safe nurse care. It is, therefore, crucial to note
that the registered nurses who found to compromise professional standards should be made
known to appropriate people.
The code of conduct of Australian registered nurses further indicate that nurses who are
found witnessing unlawful practices of their colleague and even of coworkers in management,
clinical or even research areas of practice possess an obligation and responsibility to report such

INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 4
conduct to a relevant authority for an action to be taken to safeguard the lives of individuals and
also the interest of the public (McKenna et al., 2015).
The regulation also permits the nurse to report the matter to an external authority if the
hospital or employers do not produce a proper response to the matter. Nurses also are entitled to
respect the values, dignity, beliefs, and culture of individuals who receive their services and even
their colleagues. It is therefore important for nurses to offer effective nursing care as well as
upholding standards of competent and culturally informed care (Parahoo, 2014). They should
then acknowledge the nature of families and other people and through their understanding, they
should offer appropriate care. It is also significant to highlight that registered nurses are
responsible for promoting and protecting the interests of the patients. By doing so, they ensure
that action is done to make sure quality and safety of their services are not ruin or compromised.
However, nurses should refrain from any form of prejudice and discriminatory behaviors and
attitudes to their clients.
Nurses should adhere to the provision of care without any favor. On the other hand,
nurses should consider providing pros and cons of alternative care products to their clients for
them to develop informed choices (Parahoo, 2014). This is to mean that nurses should avoid
exploitation, provision of improper information and even misrepresentation in regards to the
provision of health care and nurse care. This is to imply that they should precisely represent the
care which they want to give people rather than going contrary to the set regulations.
Furthermore, nurses should ensure that they develop trust in patients under care that their
emotional, physical, social, psychological and cultural well-being be protected at the time of
receiving care (Parahoo, 2014). They are also responsible for recognizing vulnerable persons

INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 5
such as people with disabilities, children and even people with mental illness and ensure that
they protect them from sexual exploitation.
Nurses in Australia also have a role in ensuring a professional boundary with the people
being cared. It is one of the approaches to ensuring that the rights of patients remain confidential
and also their safety is monitored in accordance with the law (Schneider & Whitehead 2013).
The unethical practices and breach of conduct among nurses in the professional lives is a risky
act which can affect their profession and general reputation in the general public. It calls for
nurses to adhere to their roles as prescribed to avoid the public from losing trust from them. It
will ensure therapeutic relationships and also the effective delivery of their care services.
The practice of nurses is based on ethics and reflectivity in accordance with the code of
ethics for Australia nurses. They develop and ensure appropriate nursing care, nursing advice
and assistance for each and every individual needing care (Parahoo, 2014). They examine their
conduct and competency as set in the standards of the nursing profession.
Ethical/legal implications
Generally, disciplinary actions, law suits, and internal inquiries are some of the issues
which are stressful to nurses who are concerned, more so the publicity which accompanies them.
In some situations, these circumstances cannot be prevented and it needs that such stress should
be proportionate to the moral culpability of the deeds done by the very nurse. The only way in
which all these can be addressed is via the legal actions which can come in different ways
(Parahoo, 2014). According to the nurses and midwives tribunal in Australia, they inquire and
determines the issues which are brought to them. It has a number of options for such issues. It
may caution or even reprimand the concerned nurse. Furthermore, it may come up with

INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 6
conditions on the nurse and in some extreme cases, it may impose suspension and even removal
from practice. In addition, the actions done by the nurse to their clients which are contrary to the
law will lead to unethical implications to the patient (Scanlon et al., 2016). It implies that any
form of injury, torture, psychological stress and even death can arise. The public will be at risk
and legal action should be taken against the institution and the concerned nurse.
The nurses are liable for any mistake they make when they are doing practices. First and
for most, if any nurse fails to follow instructions prior doing any form of care, they risk their
license being revoked (Kleinpell et al., 2014). This is to mean that he or she will not be in a
position to transact any nurse practices and he or she will lose the job. In some organizations in
Australian, the NCSBN has the right to suspend or revoke the license of the nurse if such nurse
presents a great danger to the safety of general public.
The practices by nurses are always under watch by the public. If patients feel that they
are not being served well in that particular hospital by nurses, it will raise lots of questions on
how that particular hospital operates. It will mean that other clients can get information and fails
to attend the same hospital. The hospital will lose clients and probably will lead to closure.
However, if the matter of misconduct among the nurse in the certain hospital is noted,
the NCSBN will definitely arraign the management of the hospital in court to respond on the
matter. The court decisions can result in the closure of the very hospital or revocation of their
license of practice (Johnstone, 2015). The hospital will not in a position to offer it services to the
public.
In addition, the patients care in each and every hospital are very crucial. As a matter of
fact, the hospital is liable for anything which might happen to the patient if neglected (Royals et

INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 7
al., 2016). If a nurse is very negligent, does not care the patients in accordance with the
regulations, patients can contact other secondary diseases, they can get injuries and even they can
die (Edmonds et al., 2016). However, on the matter of negligence, patients' health can deteriorate
and with watchful eyes of their families, they may file the matter in court and the nurse is judged
accordingly. These are offenses which the hospital and the concerned nurse will be liable and
they will face consequences as prescribed by the law (Yildiz et al., 2014). An organization is
blamed for the failure of some of its personnel to take a relevant action when the personal
physician of the patient is not willing or even is unable to cope with the condition which risks the
life or the life of a patient. Failure to observe the changes in the condition of the patient is a big
liability of the organization.
Any working nurse should perform their duties fully aware that the hospital does not
insure them on mistakes they made. For this particular nurse who breaches the code of conduct,
they have to pay for the charges subjected to them by NCSBN when found guilty. The nurse
practice is granted by the licensing board and the board of the state can report the license
discipline to some of the offices such as insurance council of Australia (ICA) (Blair et al., 2017).
The very office can further act by placing the nurse on the excluded provider list. It implies that
the very nurse will not be in a position to work in any organization which usually receives the
ICA money.
Similarly, the state can further exclude the nurse from any form of employment which is
funded by ICA services. These particular actions can render the nurse disqualified and
unemployable in any other state (Atkins et al., 2017). However, the nurse can also be blacklisted
from obtaining any other license in other professions. Personally, the law points out that as a

INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 8
nurse, I should report any acts by other nurses which threaten the safety of the patients as well as
general public. It means that I would be punished and this could come in different ways. My
license can be revoked or I might be penalized for gross misconduct.
Conclusions
Breaching the code of conduct in nurse practice forms one of the crimes which have cost
many nurses in Australia. The nurse practice is guided by the regulations installed by NCSBN
thus each and every nurse is entitled to make decisions based on their knowledge. Given that the
very nurse procured misconduct, the laws are very clear on the kinds of punishments need to be
taken. As a nurse, it is advisable for each and every nurse to practice nursing under the guidance
of the law and not under the personal interests. It will ensure that nursing profession is respected
and trusted by the public and eventually people will benefit a lot.

INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 9
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INTRODUCTION TO NURSING PROFESSION 10
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