Personal injury lawyer Jeff Mitchell said the province’s recent inclusion of registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs) as a “new nursing profession” will give lawyers in his area of practice food for thought.
One question is how the duties of these nurses will fit into the delivery of mental health care, said Mitchell, who is based in Nova Scotia but also licensed to practise in P.E.I.
“It certainly broadens a lawyer’s perspective on what appropriate care looks like,” said Mitchell, principal at Nova Injury Law. “If there is a registered psychiatric nurse available at the hospital, in the emergency department, the next question is: Were they consulted? What was their involvement? If they were there, why didn’t they see the patient? Could that intervention have led to a positive result, as opposed to something else? And that could be suicide, addiction, self-harm or other terrible things that no one wants [for] a patient.”
On Aug. 13, P.E.I.’s government announced it was “introducing regulatory amendments to enhance health care across the province,” which includes the recognition of RPNs. A news release states the new regulations “officially recognize” RPNs as a “distinct profession,” making PEI “the first province in Eastern Canada to recognize psychiatric nursing.”
Other changes include allowing registered nurses (RNs) with “advanced education” to apply for “advanced certification” to prescribe, dispense and administer certain medications.
As well, the changes will allow “RN diabetes educators to prescribe new doses of diabetes medications as approved by Health Canada.”
“This change will significantly increase access to services by expanding the scope of practice of available health professionals in our system,” states the release.
Mitchell said expanding the scope of nursing will take pressure off doctors.
“Obviously, bringing more people into the health-care system, from a treatment perspective, is a good thing, and there is an obvious need for additional practitioners, and nursing is a key component of that because physicians can’t do everything — nor should they. They should be practicing medicine, and nurses have a key role to play in that system, as well.”
PEI health and wellness minister Mark McLane spoke of “giving Islanders better access to health care.”
“These regulatory changes will help us deliver the highest standard of care and represent a modern approach to health care in PEI,” said McLane in a statement. “By expanding the nursing profession to include registered psychiatric nurses and enhancing the prescribing capabilities of RNs, we are taking concrete steps to improve health-care access and outcomes for all Islanders."
College of Registered Nurses and Midwives of P.E.I. chief executive officer and registrar Melissa Panton said in an email to Law360 Canada that nurses in the province “carry individual liability protection as part of their registration to practice,” and that “RN Prescribers in PEI will be working within an employer-based model.”
“We will not have independent practice related to RN prescribing,” said Panton. “I am not aware of any legal implications there may be. The College would handle any discipline matters related to complaints that may constitute professional misconduct or incompetence.”
Panton did not reply to a request for further comment.
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