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Competencies in the Context of Entry-Level Registered Nurse Practice:

 

Registered nursing is a self-regulated profession in Canada. Through provincial and territorial legislation, nursing regulatory bodies are accountable for public protection by ensuring registered nurses are safe, competent, compassionate, and ethical practitioners. Regulatory bodies achieve this mandate through a variety of regulatory activities such as registration and licensure, professional conduct review, setting standards governing nursing practice and education, describing the scope of registered nursing practice, and identifying competencies required for entry-level registered nurse practice.

 

From a regulatory perspective, the entry-level competencies serve the primary purpose of nursing education program approval by describing the competencies required for entry-level registered nurses to provide safe, competent, compassionate, and ethical nursing care in a variety of practice settings. The competencies also serve as a guide for curriculum development and for public and employer awareness of the practice expectations of entry-level registered nurses.

 

Students who have met the requirements of an approved nursing education program are eligible to write a registration examination that is approved by the board/council of the jurisdictional regulatory body, successful completion of which is required for registration to practise. Entry-level competencies inform the development and revision of entry-to-practice registration examinations.

 

The most recent entry-level competencies for RNs are here. Note that individual regulators may have minor jurisdictional differences.