What is an NP? Flashcards
Flashcard 1:
Question: What is the purpose of the College of Nurses of Ontario’s (the College’s) standards?
Answer: The purpose of the College of Nurses of Ontario’s standards is to inform nurses of their accountabilities and the public about what to expect of nurses. These standards contribute to public protection and serve as benchmarks for how competent nurses should perform.
Question: Who are Nurse Practitioners (NPs) in Ontario, and what are their key accountabilities?
Answer: Nurse Practitioners (NPs) in Ontario, also known as Registered Nurses in the Extended Class, have met additional nursing education, experience, and exam requirements set by the College of Nurses of Ontario. Their key accountabilities include diagnosing, ordering and interpreting diagnostic tests, prescribing medications, and promoting health with the aim of optimizing the health of individuals and communities.
Question: What are the specialty certificates available for Nurse Practitioners (NPs) in Ontario?
Answer: The College registers NPs with one or more of the following specialty certificates:
Nurse Practitioner – Primary Health Care (NP-PHC)
Nurse Practitioner – Pediatrics (NP-Pediatrics)
Nurse Practitioner – Adult (NP-Adult).
Question: What is the nursing scope of practice statement, and who does it apply to?
Answer: The nursing scope of practice statement applies to all nurses. It defines the practice of nursing as the promotion of health and the assessment, provision of care, and treatment of health conditions to attain or maintain optimal function.
Question: What are some controlled acts that Nurse Practitioners (NPs) are authorized to perform?
Answer: NPs are authorized to perform controlled acts that include communicating a diagnosis to a client, performing procedures below the dermis or a mucous membrane, putting instruments into specific body openings, applying and ordering the application of energy, setting bone fractures or joint dislocations, administering substances by injection or inhalation, prescribing medications, and treating individuals with serious disorders of thought, cognition, mood, or perception through psychotherapy techniques.
Question: What is the role of Nurse Practitioners (NPs) in health assessment?
Answer: NPs integrate evidence-informed knowledge with advanced assessment skills to conduct comprehensive or focused health assessments appropriate to the individual client’s presentation. They also perform procedures for client assessments and identify urgent, emergent, and life-threatening situations.
Question: How do Nurse Practitioners (NPs) engage in the diagnostic process?
Answer: NPs engage in the diagnostic process by considering differential diagnoses, ordering appropriate tests and procedures, arranging follow-up of test results, communicating clinically significant results, and verifying that the client understands relevant findings and diagnoses.
Question: What are some responsibilities of Nurse Practitioners (NPs) in therapeutic management?
Answer: NPs formulate and document a plan of care based on assessment findings, diagnosis, and evidence-informed practice. They select appropriate treatments or interventions, provide pharmacological interventions, and develop appropriate follow-up and monitoring plans in collaboration with the client.
Question: What do Nurse Practitioners (NPs) need to consider when prescribing and dispensing controlled substances?
Answer: When prescribing and dispensing controlled substances, NPs should consider available treatment options, incorporate strategies to assess, manage, and monitor the risks of misuse, addiction, and diversion, prescribe an appropriate quantity, and inform clients about the unique risks associated with medication misuse, addiction, and diversion.
Question: What is the role of Nurse Practitioners (NPs) regarding medical cannabis?
Answer: NPs should exercise caution when considering the use of medical cannabis in a patient’s treatment plan, using evidence to inform this treatment decision. NPs must also comply with cannabis regulations under the Cannabis Act and inform clients about the unique risks associated with medical cannabis due to its variability in composition and potency.
Question: What information must Nurse Practitioners (NPs) include on a prescription and in the client’s health record when prescribing medication?
Answer: When prescribing medication, NPs must include the client’s name and address, the date, name of the medication, its strength (if applicable), directions for use (including dose, route, frequency, and duration), quantity of the medication, number of refills (if applicable), and the NP’s name, business address, telephone number, protected title, College registration number, and signature (includes electronic signature).
Question: Under what circumstances may NPs dispense medication?
Answer: NPs may dispense medication they’ve prescribed or medication prescribed by a colleague in their team. They may do so when the client does not have reasonable or timely access to a pharmacy, would not otherwise receive the medication, does not have the financial resources to obtain it, or when the medication is dispensed to test the client’s therapeutic response.
Question: What are the specific requirements when NPs dispense fentanyl patches?
Answer: When dispensing fentanyl patches, NPs must notify the pharmacy about the prescription, write the name and location of the pharmacy on the prescription, and indicate “first prescription” if the NP has not previously prescribed a fentanyl patch for the client. NPs must provide the medication directly to the client or their representative, include specific information on the medication label, and meet requirements outlined in the Safeguarding our Communities Act, 2015.
Question: Under what circumstances may NPs compound medication?
Answer: NPs may compound medication when the client does not have reasonable or timely access to a pharmacy, would not otherwise receive the medication, or does not have the financial resources to obtain it. They must document the circumstance under which the medication is compounded and dispense the compounded medication to the client or their representative.
Question: What must NPs consider when selling medication?
Answer: NPs may sell medication only when the client does not have reasonable or timely access to a pharmacy, would not otherwise receive the medication, does not have the financial resources to obtain it, or as part of a health promotion initiative. They must document the circumstance of the sale and the price charged.
