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Nursing Practice in Maryland

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Nursing Practice in Maryland
Myrnie Johnson
Walden University
Nurse 3000 Section 6, Issues and Trends in Nursing
August 18, 2013

Nursing Practice in Maryland
Nurse Practice Acts (NPA’s) are a set of laws that are individualized state-to-state that define the scope of nursing practice. The guidelines of the NPA and its rules provide safe parameters within which to work, as well as protect patients from unprofessional and unsafe nursing practice (“Nurse Practice Act, Rules & Regulations”, 2013). The purpose of this paper is to explore the influence of professional standards and legislation on nursing in the state of Maryland.
Scope of Practice
New graduate registered nurses (RNs) must fill out an application to take the NCLEX-RN examination in Maryland after they have successfully completed an education program approved by the Board of Nursing (BON). If this program was completed in another state, the program must be comparable to those approved by the BON in Maryland. The Maryland NPA defines an “approved” program as one being “in compliance with the regulations of the board” and “holds a certificate of approval from the Board of Nursing” (Department of Health and Mental Hygiene). If the applicant is from Puerto Rico, they must pass a Spoken English test. All applicants must then complete a Criminal History Background Check application with fingerprinting and declare their primary state of residence (Maryland Board of Nursing, 2011). Effective in 2013, Maryland licensees may renew their license now once every two years as opposed to the previous annual requirement (this doubled the online renewal fee). “A licensed nurse must be able to provide evidence of 1,000 hours of active practice within a 5 year period. This includes supervision, teaching, administration, positions requiring use of nursing knowledge, judgment and skill, or positions requiring licensure for employment as well as direct patient care or must successfully compete a Board approved refresher course” (MBON, 2011). The Maryland NPA states, the “RN shall (a) Participate in activities to evaluate quality of care including, but not limited to, monitoring the structure, process, and outcome of nursing practice, with consideration for access and cost; (b) Use quality monitoring data to identify opportunities for improving care; and (c) Participate in activities related to implementing changes designed to improve care (Department of Health and Mental Hygiene). This NPA also requires RNs to (a) Participate in educational opportunities and experiences to maintain professional competence; and (b) Obtain knowledge and skills appropriate to the practice setting (Department of Health and Mental Hygiene).
Professional Standards
Professional standards serve as an outline as what is to be expected from every practicing RN and ensure quality care that the patients will receive. According to Policies and Politics in Nursing and Healthcare, professional ethics are comprised of three components; its purpose, the conduct expected of the professional, and the skills and outcomes expected in professional practice. “Professional ethics is the study of how personal moral norms apply or conflict with the promise and duties of one’s professionalism. Society demands that professionals be held to a separate moral standard of conduct because the choices professionals make affect other people’s lives more than their own” (Curtin, L., pg. 81). Ethics and standards affect nursing practice because once the code becomes the “norm” and is adopted by the profession; the behavior will become expected and habitual to the RN. Standards of care also have an impact on nursing practice by creating a learning environment for the RNs. It is expected of RNs to keep up to date on new research impacting their quality of care and improved patient outcomes, and doing this also facilitates improved competency of the providers. For example, recently there has been a significant focus on the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender communities. Because of this recent surge, there have been standards of care (SOC) developed concerning the individualized care this community needs. The overall goal of the SOC is to “provide clinical guidance for health professionals to assist transsexual, transgender, and gender-nonconforming people with safe and effective pathways to achieving lasting personal comfort with their gendered selves, in order to maximize their overall health, psychological well-being, and self-fulfillment” (International Journal of Transgenderism).
Summary
Standards of care serve as an outline and guide RNs when administering care to patients and families. These SOC are based on patient outcomes and are being changed and improved as new research necessitates so. Nurse Practice Acts vary from state to state and are executed and managed by the state’s Board of Nursing.
Resources
Coleman, E. E., Bockting, W. W., Botzer, M. M., Cohen-Kettenis, P. P., DeCuypere, G. G., Feldman, J. J., & ... Zucker, K. K. (2012). Standards of Care for the Health of Transsexual, Transgender, and Gender-Nonconforming People, Version 7.International Journal Of Transgenderism, 13(4), 165-232. doi:10.1080/15532739.2011.700873

Department of health and mental hygiene. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.dsd.state.md.us/comar/subtitle_chapters/10_Chapters.aspx

Mason, D., Leavitt, J., & Chaffee, M. (2012). Policy and Politics in Nursing and Healthcare. St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier/Saunders

Nurse practice act, rules & regulations. (2013). Retrieved from https://www.ncsbn.org/1455.htm

On-line license and certification renewal. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.mbon.org/main.php?v=norm&p=0&c=olrenew/index.html

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