Resource Center

This study compares entry-level nursing activities of U.S. registered nurses with a cohort from Ontario, Canada. The College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) collaborated with NCSBN on this initiative. (© 2010)

This study compares entry-level nursing activities of U.S. registered nurses with a cohort from British Columbia, Canada. The College of Registered Nurses of British Columbia (CRNBC) collaborated with NCSBN on this initiative. (© 2010)

This annual publication provides national and state summary data of Member Boards’ licensure activities, as well as data on candidate performance on the NCLEX-RN and NCLEX-PN examinations. (© 2010)

Explains the methodology used to assess the readbility of the NNAAP Examination.

This study reports the importance ratings of statements listing the knowledge needed by certified entry-level nurse aides/nursing assistants (NAs) employed in various health care settings. The results of this study (i.e., the important knowledge statements) will be used to inform item development. (© 2010)

More than 2,000 practice anecdotes emailed by new nurses during their first 5 years of practice were analyzed to describe nurses’ definitions of competence and how it developed over time. Nurses defined competence as efficient care amid complex priorities; rapid response to subtle changes in patients’ conditions; seeing the big picture and working the system on patients’ behalf; interpersonal warmth, respect, and authority; and a committed desire to learn and improve. Support for development of these qualities may promote nursing care quality in high-acuity practice environments.

Speak for Success was a research study designed to test the effectiveness of an evidence-based, comprehensive communication training program for international nurses. This study indicated that a short-term linguistic intervention was effective in reducing phonologic errors of international nurses regardless of gender, age, country of origin, or length of residency in the US. Despite a tendency of improvement for some communication variables, differences in between-group and within-group comparisons were not significant.

The Missouri Just Culture Collaborative brought together health-care providers, regulators, and other key stakeholders to learn and implement the principles of Just Culture. Under the leadership of the Missouri Center for Patient Safety, 67 health-care providers and regulatory agencies worked together to implement aspects of Just Culture. The collaborative led to an improved understanding between providers and regulators about barriers to implementing true Just Culture and how regulators can support provider efforts to improve the safety culture.

Promoting clear communication and information sharing among nurse regulatory bodies is an essential step toward protecting patients worldwide. The research described in this article was intended to enhance global information sharing among nurse regulators, aid the development of a system that efficiently validates nurses' eligibility, and thus manage risk associated with increasing nurse migration, and allow recognition of best practices.

This multisite study examines the impact of multiple-patient simulation experiences on the development of students' abilities to make clinical judgments in evolving situations and the correlation between the design of the simulation and student outcome achievement in the final semester of their prelicensure nursing program.

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.

These are complex times for regulators on nursing boards, particularly in three areas.  First, they must stay abreast of emerging practice issues emanating from technological advances, systems thinking, a more diverse patient population living longer with multiple chronic illnesses, and a national focus on patient safety and error prevention.  Second, there has been a national call for the transformation of nursing education, and nursing boards are seeing increasing numbers of substandard or fraudulent nursing education programs.  This adds to the boards’ workload.  Third, disciplinary activity involving nurses has increased during the last 10 years, forcing regulations to stay on their toes regarding disciplinary action and investigation.  In this challenging climate, the time is ripe to focus on evidence-based regulation as a strategy for making quality decisions related to regulation.