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This study aimed to determine possible risk factors associated with error events or practice breakdowns for nurses that were reported to boards of nursing (BONs). We evaluated 861 cases submitted by BONs to the NCSBN’s Taxonomy of Error, Root Cause Analysis, and Practice-Responsibility database. Standard statistical analysis was used. A high percentage of nurses involved in practice breakdowns that were reported to BONs have a negative job history (discipline or termination for practice issues by their employers). Among the 725 nurses with complete job histories available, 60% (n = 437) had been disciplined or terminated by their employers in the past. A nurse's job history may serve as a useful index to identify a small group of nurses with a risk of being involved in a practice breakdown. In addition to conventional disciplinary actions, a tailored remediation program should be considered to prevent additional practice breakdowns.

Medication aides are unlicensed assistive personnel who administer medications. A survey was developed to provide insights into medication aide education, supervision, and work role. Items were derived by reviewing the literature and regulations. Data were analyzed by calculating percentages over all respondents, followed by breaking out data by type of work setting. In some cases, state regulations were incorporated to determine the percentage of responders who were performing tasks that regulations stated they should not perform. Study implications are discussed.

The First National Survey of Medication Aides was developed with the goal of providing insights into medication aide (MA) education, training, supervision and work role from the MA perspective. The results will help regulators make decisions about the implementation or development of safe and effective MA programs.

Summary data for multiple categories of candidates, U.S. and international, is provided for performance on NCSBN's two nurse licensure examinations, the NCLEX-PN and NCLEX-RN.

This study identifies the knowledge needed by newly licensed RNs. The results of this study (i.e., the important knowledge statements) will be used to inform item development.

This study reports the importance ratings for activities performed by certified entry-level medication aides/medication assistants (MAs) employed in various health care settings. The findings from this study are used to evaluate the validity of the test plan, content outline and examination questions for the MA certification examination.

• Shirley Brekken of the Minnesota Board of Nursing provides a glimpse into the busy life of an executive director
• Learn about NCSBN's social media tools for the nursing community
• A recap of the World Café Education Meeting
• Updates regarding the NCSBN Simulation Study and NCSBN Transition to Practice Study
• “The Unknown Educational Resource: NCSBN Member Board Profiles” introduces readers to a series of documents that provides an overview of the nursing regulatory environment and outlines specific functions of a jurisdiction’s board of nursing

• Brett Thompson, director, Discipline, Mississippi Board of Nursing, gives readers a glimpse into a day in her life as lead prosecutor of the Mississippi Board of Nursing
• Learn about the discipline process of boards of nursing
• Understand the new scoring grid used in the APRN Consensus Model
• NCSBN Learning Extension shares how it’s expanding its online community
• Joyce A. Hahn and Patricia F. Davis of the George Washington University School of Nursing provide their expertise on simulation in “Integrating a Peer Review Quality Framework into a Pediatric Virtual Hospital Simulation Experience”

The use of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) has grown over the past few years and is now seen as an essential part of primary and acute patient care and case management. Boards of Nursing retain responsibility for public safety and need to be aware of current practices, policies and patient safety enhancements with the use of EHRs.

This engaging program will provide nursing regulatory bodies with:

• A general understanding of information contained within the EHR,
• A discussion of the policy implications and patient safety enhancements with the implementation of an EHR and
• A live demonstration navigating the EHR

Presenter: Thomas Andrews, RN-BC,MS Director, Acute Care Informatics Presence Health

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There is evidence linking improved patient care to standardized transition to practice programs in the areas of safety, competence, and retention.  This chapter explores that evidence, presents a standardized model as a solution, and gives examples of transition program models, as well as an overview of NCSBN’s Transition to Practice model.

This article provides the results of a nonexperimental, descriptive study conducted to explore the frequency and importance of activities performed by certified, entry level MAs. More than 1,800 MAs provided valid responses.