Nurse Reporter Winter 2007 - Wyoming State Board of Nursing
Nurse Reporter Winter 2007 - Wyoming State Board of Nursing
Nurse Reporter Winter 2007 - Wyoming State Board of Nursing
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Compact <strong>Nursing</strong><br />
What Is It and What It<br />
Would Mean To You<br />
Compact nursing was a topic considered<br />
in this year’s <strong>Wyoming</strong><br />
Legislature. It did not progress<br />
through the system, however, it is an<br />
issue that the <strong>Board</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Nursing</strong> has<br />
been working on for the past few<br />
years. <strong>Nurse</strong>s in <strong>Wyoming</strong> need to<br />
be knowledgeable about the term<br />
and what it would mean to them, if<br />
the law were passed and rules and<br />
regulations were written to implement<br />
the <strong>Nurse</strong> Licensure Compact<br />
(NLC). The NLC is administered by<br />
the <strong>Nurse</strong> Licensure Compact<br />
Administrators (NLCA).<br />
■ What is it: According to the<br />
<strong>Nurse</strong> Licensure Compact, the NLC<br />
is a mutual recognition model <strong>of</strong><br />
nurse licensure that allows a nurse<br />
to have one license in his/her state<br />
<strong>of</strong> residency and to practice in other<br />
states who are part <strong>of</strong> the Compact.<br />
This practice may be physical or<br />
electronic. So, you, the nurse,<br />
would be licensed in the state in<br />
which you live, but you could practice<br />
in states that belong to the<br />
NLC, knowing that you are subject<br />
to each state’s practice laws and discipline.<br />
Currently, there are 23<br />
states that belong; 20 have implemented<br />
the compact. <strong>State</strong>s<br />
around <strong>Wyoming</strong> that have implemented<br />
the Compact are Nebraska,<br />
Idaho, Utah, and South Dakota.<br />
WSBN, Memorandum August,<br />
2006). Colorado has passed legislation<br />
regarding the Compact but has<br />
not begun implementation.<br />
■ Why have it: The purposes <strong>of</strong><br />
the NLC are to: facilitate the states’<br />
responsibility to protect the public’s<br />
health and safety; ensure and<br />
encourage the cooperation <strong>of</strong> party<br />
states in the areas <strong>of</strong> nurse licensure<br />
and regulation; facilitate the<br />
exchange <strong>of</strong> information between<br />
states; promote compliance with the<br />
laws governing the practice <strong>of</strong> nursing;<br />
invest all party states with the<br />
authority to hold a nurse accountable<br />
for meeting all state practice<br />
laws in the state in which the<br />
patient is located at the time care is<br />
rendered. (<strong>Nurse</strong> Licensure<br />
Compact, November,1998).<br />
■ How is it implemented: In<br />
order to achieve mutual recognition,<br />
each state must enact legislation<br />
authorizing the NLC. Once the<br />
<strong>Wyoming</strong> Legislature enacts law<br />
authorizing a NLC, the <strong>Wyoming</strong><br />
<strong>State</strong> <strong>Board</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Nursing</strong> (WSBN)<br />
would then need to adopt and promulgate<br />
the Rules and Regulations for<br />
the NLC that have been established<br />
by the NLCA to implement the law.<br />
The NLC and the Rules and<br />
Regulations may not be modified<br />
without consent <strong>of</strong> the member<br />
states. Both the home state and the<br />
states in the agreement may take<br />
disciplinary actions. The home state<br />
may take licensure action while the<br />
remote state may limit or deny the<br />
privilege to practice in their state.<br />
■ What problems, concerns, or<br />
issues does NLC present: The<br />
WSBN works to protect the public<br />
against unsafe practice. To do this,<br />
the <strong>State</strong> requires all licensees in<br />
<strong>Wyoming</strong> to undergo a Criminal<br />
Background Check. If <strong>Wyoming</strong><br />
were to become a member <strong>of</strong> the<br />
Compact, licensees from some <strong>of</strong> the<br />
Compact states could practice in<br />
<strong>Wyoming</strong> without having had a<br />
Criminal Background Check. That<br />
means that some licensees might<br />
have been convicted <strong>of</strong> such things<br />
as drug diversion, sexual assault,<br />
fraud, or abuse and yet still practice<br />
in <strong>Wyoming</strong>.<br />
If a complaint is filed against a<br />
nurse in a remote state, that state<br />
6 W Y O M I N G N U R S E R E P O R T E R