Advanced Nursing Practice
Canadian Nurse Practitioner Initiative
About the Canadian Nurse Practitioner Initiative |
The Canadian Nurse Practitioner Initiative (CNPI) was funded by Health Canada through its Primary Health Care Transition Fund to provide better access to primary health care for all Canadians. In developing recommendations for the sustained integration of nurse practitioners (NPs) in Canada's health system, the CNPI consulted with representatives of nursing and other health-care professional organizations, regulators, educators, employers and union officials, as well as with federal, provincial and territorial officials.
Vision
CNPI envisioned a renewed health system that optimizes the contributions of nurse practitioners to the health of all Canadians. Nurse practitioners will be recognized and utilized across Canada as essential providers of quality health care. The goal of CNPI was to facilitate sustained integration of the nurse practitioner role in the health system to improve Canadians' access to health services.
Objectives
CNPI objectives included developing the following:
- A definition of the NP role
- Recommendations for collaborative practice models
- Recommendations for curriculum design
- Recruitment, retention and deployment strategies
- Recommendations for legislation and regulation
- National core competencies
- A national licensure examination
- Processes to support professional mobility
- Strategies to reduce barriers to practice
- A communications and marketing plan to promote the nurse practitioner role
Although the CNPI's mandate ended in March 2006, the CNA (has) committed to realizing far-reaching vision for a renewed health system that optimizes the contributions of nurse practitioners to the health of all Canadians.
The 18-month initiative resulted in Nurse Practitioners: The Time is Now, a document that comes in two forms: as a condensed overview for general reading, and as a detailed technical report. The report was released at the 2006 CNA biennial convention.
Implementation of the recommendations
Four years after the CNPI recommendations, CNA published Recommendations of the Canadian Nurse Practitioner Initiative: Progress Report. Funded in part by Health Canada’s Office of Nursing Policy, this report was written from a pan-Canadian perspective and reflects consultations with key stakeholders on the status of each CNPI recommendation. Information from the consultation process was compiled in the report to identify successes and variances in each jurisdiction and to identify priorities for the integration of the NP role in Canada.
The CNPI had five components:
1. Practice and Evaluation
The Practice and Evaluation team developed recommendations to support full and effective integration of NPs into primary health care. It described consistent practice guidelines that can be used by all jurisdictions.
The team developed a definition of NPs and their role in helping improve access to and delivery of cost-effective and efficient primary health care services. The team also investigated strategies for overcoming barriers to implementing the role of NPs in all jurisdictions across Canada.
2. Legislation and Regulation
The Legislation and Regulation team developed a pan-Canadian framework for the legislation and regulation of NPs across Canada, pan-Canadian core competencies, a pan-Canadian licensure/registration examination, and a mechanism to accommodate the licensing and registration of NPs when moving between Canadian provinces and territories..The goal was to encourage all provinces and territories to use the exam and establish comparable practice guidelines for NPs across the country.
3. Education
The Education team developed recommendations for NP education across Canada, including curriculum and programs, delivery methods, continuing education, re-entry and strategies for awarding credits through a prior learning assessment recognition process.
4. Health Human Resources Planning
Health human resources planning is critically important to the renewal of primary health care in Canada. The CNPI developed models for provinces and territories to plan their current and future NP requirements in the context of a renewed primary health care system. Part of this work was the revision of a national database of educational programs to include programs for NPs and enhancement of the Canadian Institute of Health Informationnational nursing database so that it includes NPs.
This team also developed recommendations for increasing the supply of NPs as a national primary health care resource.
The Health Human Resources Planning Simulation Model for NPs in Primary Health Care™ is a one-of-a-kind software program that was developed to help planners determine current and future NP requirements in their jurisdictions. Click here to find out more.
5. Strategic Communications
The Change Management, Social Marketing and Strategic Communications team implemented a communications strategy aimed at informing stakeholders and increasing the public's understanding and acceptance of the NP role in primary health care across Canada.
During the course of the initiative, this team:
- fostered a collaborative environment in which governments, health professionals, employers and academics worked together to integrate NPs into the primary health care system;
- generated public awareness and acceptance of the NP as an integral part of the primary health care team; and
- demonstrated the value of NPs to Canadians and the primary health care system in Canada.
Team
The CNPI team included:
- Executive Director, Marian Knock (British Columbia)
- Managers
- Legislation and Regulation, Madge Applin (Newfoundland and Labrador)
- Practice and Evaluation, Rob Calnan (British Columbia)
- Health Human Resources, Lisa Little (Ontario)
- Education, Gail Shandro (Alberta)
- Strategic Communications; Change Management and Social Marketing, Karen McCarthy (Ontario)
