EMPOWER

Addressing the future health needs of Albertans led Council to create a ten-year Strategic Plan for the profession. The plan forecasts that by 2023 licensed practical nurses are leaders in healthcare, contributing to evidence-informed care delivery, education, research, management and administration; and are invaluable members of the care team in a transformed health system.

• Legislative and regulatory changes enable the optimization of LPNs.
• Basic and advanced education prepares LPNs to meet the needs of changing demographics in a transformed health system (for example, cultural competence, leadership, collaborative care, chronic disease management, addiction and mental health, community care, seniors’ care, dementia care and palliative care).
• LPNs are recognized as opinion leaders in healthcare reform and consulted by Government and policy makers.
• LPNs influence public policy development (for example, policies relating to social determinants of health) in the interest of Albertans.
• LPNs are recognized as leaders in healthcare.
• LPNs adopt technology for efficient and effective delivery of care.
• LPNs with advanced education inform the profession through scholarly research, publication and mentorship.
• LPNs fully embrace interprofessional and intersectoral collaboration.
• LPNs strategically manage their own practice through empowered professionalism.

CLPNA’s Strategic Plan states that LPNs evolve to meet the changing needs of the population. This commitment was demonstrated as our Council hosted a second Think Tank on October 23. The 2014 Think Tank built on the prior year’s learning, with the theme Planning for the Future of Seniors’ and Dementia Care. The Think Tank featured thought-leaders from Europe, Canada and Alberta. These innovators in the field of seniors’ care and dementia spoke about new models of care, health policy and best practices in dementia and seniors’ care. The key message was repeated by all speakers: there is an important leadership role for nurses to impact the way we care for seniors. CLPNA is applying learning from the 2014 Think Tank into the 2015-2018 Strategic Plan for the College.

CLPNA meets regularly with the Senior Nursing Advisor for the Government of Alberta. These meetings provide opportunity to discuss issues of mutual concern and form future collaborations.

The Alberta Practical Nurse Education Programs Committee, hosted and co-chaired by CLPNA, meets quarterly to share and identify opportunities and synergies to influence ongoing delivery of practical nurse programs and related education and practice policies in Alberta. Members of the committee come from practical nurse programs, government and employers. Key areas of discussion in 2014 included workforce projections, best practices in simulation, the CLPNA Competency Profile Review process, a status update on new education standards for practical nurse programs, consultation on the Canadian Practical Nurse Registration Examination (CPNRE) new 2017 Blueprint and a facilitated session outlining the 2014 CLPNA Strategic Plan, with examination of future education needs for LPNs through a planning forum with the committee.

CLPNA consults regularly with Alberta Health Services (AHS) and Covenant Health, the largest employers of LPNs in Alberta, on issues related to nursing and healthcare delivery. In 2014, CLPNA was involved in several key AHS initiatives including the Provincial Nursing Professional Practice Council; Workforce Model Transformation Evaluation Council (WMT); and participated in Covenant Health stakeholder feedback to the accreditation process, and their Seniors Forum.

CLPNA also participates in the Alberta Federation of Regulated Health Professionals and subcommittees related to the complaints process and continuing competency. The Federation is a group of 27 health regulatory Colleges with the same mandate: “To regulate our respective professions in the public interest”, and who work together to advance healthcare regulation and provide direction, expertise and leadership on health and related public policy.

Other CLPNA collaborations in 2014 included ongoing connections with the Alberta Association on Gerontology (AAG) (Provincial Board member), Alberta Seniors Care Coalition (ASCC), the Alberta Continuing Care Association (ACCA) and Alberta Nursing Education Administrators (ANEA).

The College participates and is actively involved in discussions regarding Foreign Qualification Recognition, contributing both on a provincial and a national level to ongoing planning and initiatives.

Canadian Council for Practical Nurse Regulators (CCPNR)

The CCPNR is a federation of regulators responsible for the profession of practical nursing in their jurisdiction and provides a collective voice on matters affecting practical nurse regulation. The CLPNA is a member and supports the focus on promotion of regulatory excellence and continued harmonization of the LPN profession within member jurisdictions.

CCPNR maintains a Practice Consultant Group (PCG) that meets regularly to exchange information on regulatory issues related to the practice of practical nursing in Canada. CCPNR has also established a National Registration and Licensure Group (NRLG) to collaborate on the registration/licensure processes across jurisdictions within the profession in Canada. The purpose of these two groups is to support and reinforce the work of the CCPNR, its strategic priorities and/or its mandate. CLPNA is active in both groups.

CCPNR supports the change from a paper-based national exam for practical nurses in Canada to a computer-based version of the exam. This work will continue throughout 2015 with implementation projected for 2016.

Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI)

CLPNA participated on the CIHI Nursing Database Data Dictionary Working Group, which reviewed the Registered Nurse, Licensed Practical Nurse and Registered Psychiatric Nurse Data Dictionaries used by the jurisdictions for data submission to CIHI’s Nursing Database (NDB). The purpose of this group was to update the definitions for the data dictionary across the country to ensure consistency in the reporting of health information.

Another example of CLPNA embracing interprofessional collaboration is our participation in a pilot project to create a unique identifier for nurses throughout Canada. CIHI is leading this initiative and the unique identifier will be called ReNUI. This number will follow healthcare providers across time and space as a key element of Health Human Resource planning. If determined successful, this will identify nurses working in multiple jurisdictions, plus will enable researchers to track interjurisdictional migration and follow healthcare providers through educational pathways.

National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN)

NCSBN is a U.S. based organization “through which boards of nursing act and counsel together on matters of common interest and concern”. All 59 nursing regulatory boards are members of the NCSBN and 21 Canadian and international nursing regulatory boards belong as associate members. CLPNA continues to be an active associate member of NCSBN.