title: Registered nurse scope of practice in Australia: an integrative review of the literature.
abstract: The nursing profession comprises Australia's largest regulated health workforce yet its practice boundaries are poorly understood. The ambiguity surrounding the practice scope of nurses limits the profession's ability to fully respond to Australia's current and emerging health system challenges. The aim of this review is to explore the concept of scope of practice of registered nurses (RN) in Australia, as reflected in contemporary literature. An integrative review of literature relating to the scope of practice of the Australian registered nurse published between 2007 and 2014 was conducted. Twenty primary papers and nine secondary source papers were included in the review. Themes that arose from the analysis are: Scope of practice - an elusive concept; Scope of practice and context; Scope of practice and boundaries; and Scope of practice and advanced practice. Discussion of these themes includes consideration of the professional, legal and ethical significance of scope of practice for the RN, as well as the legislative, professional and contextual influences on, and challenges to, defining scope of practice at both a professional and individual level. For the Australian registered nursing workforce to continue to be a significant and influential contributor to Australia's dynamic healthcare context, a clearly articulated scope of practice is both necessary and overdue.
authors.affiliation: a Nursing, Midwifery and Nutrition, Centre for Nursing and Midwifery Research, College of Healthcare Sciences , James Cook University , Townsville , Queensland , Australia.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Birks
authors.affiliation: b School of Primary Health , Monash University , Clayton , Victoria , Australia.
authors.forename: Jenny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.affiliation: a Nursing, Midwifery and Nutrition, Centre for Nursing and Midwifery Research, College of Healthcare Sciences , James Cook University , Townsville , Queensland , Australia.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Smithson
authors.affiliation: c School of Nursing and Midwifery , Monash University , Berwick , Victoria , Australia.
authors.forename: Robyn
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cant
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001315:Australia; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D024802:Nurse's Role; D009726:Nurses / Q000592:standards*; D009732:Nursing Care / Q000592:standards*; D009740:Nursing Staff / Q000592:standards*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic / Q000592:standards*; D011361:Professional Competence / Q000592:standards*
keywords: advanced practice; registered nursing role; role boundaries; scope of practice