Nursing practice standards reflect the degree to which individual capabilities are evaluated based on actual performance. They define the professional competencies as applicable at every level of the nursing process during patient care (American Nurses Association, [ANA], n.d.). The Texas Board of Nursing (BON) regulates the practice in Texas by developing practice standards to guide nurses in delivering quality care and maintaining professionalism. The Board ensures that every licensed nurse possesses the required competencies in quality care delivery and patient safety. The Board formulates the practice standards using the following process.
Knowledge Assessment
Knowledge assessment entails evaluating qualifications based on the nursing curriculum. The Texas Board of Nursing assesses graduate and graduate vocational nurses’ education programs to identify whether they meet the requirements of the U.S. and its territories (Texas Board of Nursing, 2021). The assessment guides the Board in the licensing and certification of qualified nurses. After the evaluation, the Board provides the nurses with a temporary practicing license, lasting for a maximum of 75 days without extension, until they complete all the certification requirements.
Defining the Scope of Practice
The BON develops the scope of practice based on practice education and specialty, compliance with the board rules and regulations, and the scope of practice regulations defined nationally by the American Nurses Association. It establishes a committee that evaluates the specialties and determines the standards based on the guidelines (Texas Board of Nursing, 2021). The primary entities involved in developing the standards of practice include ethics, competencies and skills, the working environment, and required knowledge. The Board evaluates the standards of practice based on the following guidelines.
- The consistency of the nursing practice standards with the professional scope.
- Uniformity of the standards with the national regulations or statutory requirements.
- The consistency of the practice standards with individual nurse specialty and education.
- Uniformity of the practice standards with evidence-based care approaches.
- The willingness of a nurse to accept the liabilities and accountability of the defined role.
The Texas nursing practice standards influence the nursing process for mental health by providing guidelines for quality care delivery. The American Nurses Association (ANA, n.d.) describes the standards of nursing practice as the key domains that define how, when, why, who, what, and how to deliver patient care appropriately. Therefore, the practice standards are the foundation to compliance with mental health care guidelines, leading to effective care delivery and competence maintenance.
References
American Nurses Association. Nursing scope of practice. Web.
Texas Board of Nursing. (2021). Texas Board of Nursing: Practice guidelines. Web.