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Health information

The delivery of health-related facts to patients.

Health education

A complex, systematic instruction that promotes an understanding of how to maintain personal health, improves health literacy, and promotes informed decision-making.

Shared decision making

A collaborative process where patients and providers make healthcare decisions together using the best available evidence and the patient's values and preferences.

Evidence based health education

Instruction that is transparent, tailored to patient needs, and covers diagnosis, prognosis, management options, risks, and the patient's right to refuse treatment.

Self-efficacy

An individual's perception of their capacity to achieve their goals, influenced by skill mastery, social learning, social persuasion, and emotional, spiritual, or physical states.

Social learning theory

The theoretical framework that underpins the concept of self-efficacy in client education.

Decision aids

Tools used with healthcare provider counseling to help patients actively participate in health decision-making by providing evidence of potential harms and benefits.

Content control

A feature of computer-based decision aids relating to the patient's ability to navigate clear and optional information.

Tailoring

The customization of information based on demographics and clinical conditions; however, it is associated with reduced quality of decision making in certain interactions.

Patient narratives

Patient stories or behavior modeling focusing on process deliberation, which is associated with reduced quality of decision making in the context of decision aids.

Values clarification

Exercises within decision aids, such as weighting or trade-offs, that help patients examine personal values and preferences.

Feedback-entailed interaction

Components of a decision aid that provide knowledge, summaries of preferences, algorithms, and progress reports.

Interprofessional education (IPE)

An educational approach where students from two or more disciplines learn about each other's roles to improve communication and quality of health services.

Intra-professional collaboration

A relational and respectful process among nursing colleagues that utilizes the skills of all nursing designations for optimal client outcomes.

Pharmaceutical clinical educator

A professional with a medical background who provides education on product safety, efficacy, and dosing, including off-label usage or medications in trials.

Branded education

Education that includes the specific name of a product, FDA approval, and manufacturer package inserts.

Non-branded education

Education that does not contain specific product or company information, focusing instead on themes like patient care or infusion reactions.

STEPS framework

Criteria used to distinguish evidence-based data: Safety, Tolerability, Effectiveness, Price, and Simplicity.

Precepting

A time-limited experience where the preceptor observes, coaches, and evaluates the development of specific skills within an educational program.

Coaching

A personal or professional development approach that may or may not have a time limit, often used for chronic illness management.

Supervising

An activity focused on evaluating the efficacy of skills and protecting the patient from procedural mistakes; not necessarily a dyadic relationship.

Mentoring

A formal, structured dyadic relationship involving reciprocity, mutual respect, and trust aimed at professional growth and personal development.

Hale and Phillips grounded theory

A theory of mentoring characterized by earnest intentions, filial bonds, and trustworthiness.

Olaolorunpo mentoring elements

Shared values, reciprocity, clear expectations, mutual respect, and personal connection.

Early phase (Mentoring)

The stage of setting expectations, communication patterns, time frames, and conflict strategies.

Mid phase (Mentoring)

The stage of continuous progress assessment where the mentee assumes more independence and goals are reviewed.

Final phase (Mentoring)

The stage focused on the accomplishment of goals and the potential adjustment of time frames.

Organizational barriers to preceptorship

Factors including lack of formal programs, limited financial compensation, and high workload constraints.

Legislation

Written laws (acts) or statutes, enacted by Parliament (the legislative arm of government).

Bills

Draft legislations introduced to Parliament that require the assent of the House of Commons, the Senate, and the Crown to become law.

Federal legislation

Over-arching laws that direct provincial and territorial policy, including criminal law ($CDS$, $MAID$) and the Canada Health Act.

Provincial legislation

Laws defining the provision of services under provincial jurisdiction; they can be more stringent than federal law but cannot override it.

Regulations

Form of law made under the authority of an Enabling Act; they describe how Acts are interpreted and operationalized.

Guidelines

Departmental documents used to advise how to comply with regulations; they do not have the force of law.

Standards

Authoritative statements that define expected behaviors, professional accountabilities, and benchmarks for assessing nursing performance.

College model

A regulatory model where the body is accountable to public safety, has mandatory membership, and possesses authority through legislation.

Association model

A model with voluntary membership that focuses on protecting the public while advocating for the social and economic welfare of its members.

Self-regulation

A professional privilege where society contracts a profession to control its own education, licensure, and standards for practice.

Registration

The broadest and weakest form of regulation, consisting of the presence of a nurse’s name on a regulatory body’s membership list.

Licensure

A restrictive regulatory form that defines requirements like approved education, exams, and jurisprudence for those wishing to nurse.

Competencies

Statements describing the knowledge, skills, and judgement expected of a nurse to provide safe, competent, and ethical care.

Scope of practice

The roles, functions, and accountabilities which members of a profession are legislated, educated, and authorized to perform.

Controlled acts

Procedures or interventions considered high-risk that require extra education to perform.

Continuing competence

A regulatory $QA$ mechanism intended to demonstrate that nurses maintain necessary knowledge, skills, and judgement through self-assessment and practice hours.

Code of Ethics for RNs

A statement of ethical values and commitments to care first introduced by the International Council of Nurses ($ICN$) in $1954$.

Expanded Nursing Services for Patients Act (1998)

Legislation that first set out the scope of practice for NPs in Ontario, which was initially limited to Primary Care.

Regulated Health Professions Act (RHPA) 1991

The governing framework for the regulation of all health professions in Ontario.

Healing Arts Radiation Protection Act

Amended in $1998$ to allow NPs to order $X$-rays of the chest, arm, wrist, ankle, leg, and mammograms.

HPRAC

An advisory body for health professional regulators that recommended removing qualifiers like prescription lists; it was dissolved in $2021$.

Bill 179

The Regulated Health Professions Statute Law Amendment Act $2009$ which required amending $26$ acts to fully enact expanded NP practice.

Reg 975 (Public Hospitals Act)

A regulation proclaimed in $2011$ that allowed NPs in hospitals to admit, discharge, and treat patients.

July 1, 2022

The date as of which NPs in Ontario were authorized to order $CT/MRI$ scans.

Health Canada Notice

A letter restricting a practitioner from selling or providing controlled substances, shared with pharmacies and the $CNO$.

Bill C-14

The federal legislation passed on June $17$, $2016$ that legalized Medical Assistance in Dying ($MAID$).

April 1, 2026

The deadline for provincial health plans to cover medically necessary primary care services by NPs, pharmacists, and midwives under new federal guidelines.

Single NP classification

A change taking effect July $1$, $2026$ in Ontario that removes specific PHC/adult/peds categories for NPs.

Right-touch Regulation

A regulatory approach focusing on minimal force and proportionality to achieve the primary goal of public protection.

Relational Regulation

A proactive approach where regulators build connections and collaboratively meet goals with registrants while incorporating a "just culture."

Advanced Practice Nursing (APN)

An umbrella term for RNs and NPs that integrate graduate nursing education with in-depth, specialized clinical knowledge and complex decision-making skills.

Nurse Practitioner (NP) Regulatory Authority

The legal power to autonomously diagnose, prescribe, order, and interpret diagnostic tests for clients.

Grenfell Mission (1893)

A mission from England that provided the earliest permanent medical services in Labrador and northern Newfoundland to address chronic physician shortages.

Boudreau Report (1972)

A report recommending that NPs be trained as the first point of contact in the Canadian healthcare system to meet primary healthcare needs.

1973 CNA and CMA Joint Statement

A statement recognizing the interdependent nature of nursing and medical roles, envisioning increased responsibilities for health maintenance.

Burlington Trial

An Ontario study demonstrating that NPs could safely manage $67\%$ of problems in family practice settings with high patient satisfaction.

Regulated Health Professions Act (1991)

Legislation that prevented any single profession from monopolizing healthcare and allocated tasks based on professional appropriateness.

Expanded Nursing Services for Patients Act (1998)

Ontario legislation that created the Extended Class for NPs and granted authority for three controlled acts: communicating a diagnosis, prescribing, and ordering specific tests.

Canadian NP Initiative (2005)

A federally funded project to develop a framework for the integration and sustainability of the NP role, including standardizing education and regulation.

Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS)

An RN with a Master's degree and expertise in a clinical specialty who focuses on research, education, leadership, and improving quality of care.

Acute Care NP (ACNP)

A role developed in the late 1980s in tertiary-level settings like NICUs to address medical resident shortages and provide continuity of care.

Jurisdiction (Abbott's Theory)

A concept where professions compete for control over work, knowledge, and authority through cultural and social dimensions.

Marginality (Bell hooks Perspective)

A space of resistance and strength that allows individuals at the margin to advocate for vulnerable populations and challenge power centers.

Governmentality (Foucault)

A concept that power is not just laws but shapes behaviors, thinking, and actions, allowing NPs to influence health policy and communities.

Parrhesia

The practice of speaking openly and truthfully despite risk, used to challenge dominant discourses and give voice to vulnerable groups.

Care of the Self (Foucault)

A process of self-reflection and self-knowledge that is necessary before an individual can effectively care for others.

Most Responsible Provider (MRP)

An NP role involving the management of a patient's full cycle of care, from admission and diagnosis to treatment and discharge.

PA (Physician Assistant) Model

A medical-model role that is physician-dependent and more technical/task-focused compared to the holistic nursing model.

1986 CNA Position Statement

The first formal statement on the CNS role, identifying components of clinical practice, education, research, consultation, and leadership.

NP-Led Clinics (2005)

A model of care where leadership and governance are headed by NPs championing interprofessional teams.

Leadership

A person’s ability to inspire a group to achieve common goals, requiring clear communication, conflict resolution, initiative in decision making, and the ability to motivate others as agents of change.

Leadership proficiency

A core trait in the Loretta Ford Framework involving the mastering of essential leadership skills and self-awareness.

Operational intelligence

The understanding of systems, processes, and workflow optimization required for NPs to transition from clinical experts to effective leaders.

Relationship building

The leadership trait of fostering trust and collaboration across multidisciplinary teams.

Evidence integration

The process of translating research and data into clinical practice decisions.

Team development

The act of building, mentoring, and empowering high-performing teams within a healthcare setting.

Transformational thinking

The ability to inspire innovation and lead visionary change at micro, meso, and systems levels.

Advocacy excellence

Championing the Nurse Practitioner role, patient needs, and structural policy changes.

Fiscal stewardship

The management of resources, budgets, and the development of sustainable healthcare operations.

Outcomes focus

Driving measurable improvements in the quality and safety of healthcare delivery.

Resilience

Adapting to challenges and maintaining personal well-being even under pressure.

Decision-making expertise

Making timely, ethical, and informed choices within complex clinical and organizational environments.

$2025$ State of the World’s Nursing

A WHO report noting that there are $30\text{ million}$ nurses globally and that APN roles exist in $60\%$ of countries, up from $53\%$ in $2020$.

$2025$ Single NP Classification

A regulatory expansion and labor mobility change that simplifies NP classifications into a single category.

Leadership Capacity

Organization-level systems and practices implemented to increase the number and level of leaders within an institution.

Leadership Capability

The development of individual-level leadership skills, abilities, and competencies.

Situational Awareness (SA)

Developed by Dr. Mica Endsley in the $1980s$-$1990s$, it is the ability to recognize what is happening in an environment, make sense of it, and anticipate risks.

Perception (Level $1$ SA)

The first level of situational awareness involving the noticing of key elements in the current environment, such as assessing a patient or communicating with a team.

Understanding (Level $2$ SA)

Interpreting the meaning and context of perceived elements to comprehend how they interact with each other.

Projection (Level $3$ SA)

The highest level of situational awareness, which involves anticipating future risks, needs, and outcomes.

Quality Improvement (QI)

Systematic, data-guided activities directed toward specific processes or practices within an organization to identify solutions to process issues.

Research

The systematic activity of generating new knowledge, distinct from organization-specific quality improvement.