Index
Intro
This unit group includes registered nurses, registered psychiatric nurses and graduates of a nursing program who are awaiting registration (graduate nurses). They provide direct nursing care to patients, deliver health education programs and provide consultative services regarding issues relevant to the practice of nursing. They are employed in a variety of settings including hospitals, nursing homes, extended care facilities, rehabilitation centres, doctors’ offices, clinics, community agencies, companies and private homes, or they may be self-employed.
Nurses trained exclusively as registered psychiatric nurses (RPN) are regulated in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. In all other provinces and territories, registered nurses (RN) may work as psychiatric nurses without separate registration.
Registered nurses and registered psychiatric nurses may progress to supervisory and managerial positions with experience.
Main Duties
General duty registered nurses perform some or all of the following duties:
- Assess patients to identify appropriate nursing interventions
- Collaborate with members of an interdisciplinary health team to plan, implement, co-ordinate and evaluate patient care in consultation with patients and their families
- Administer medications and treatments as prescribed by a physician or according to established policies and protocols
- Monitor, assess, address, document and report symptoms and changes in patients’ conditions
- Operate or monitor medical apparatus or equipment
- Assist in surgery and other medical procedures
- May supervise licensed practical nurses and other nursing staff
- May develop and implement discharge planning process on admission of patients
- May teach and counsel patients and their families on health-related issues in collaboration with other health care providers.
Registered nurses may specialize in areas such as surgery, obstetrics care, psychiatric care, critical care, pediatrics, geriatrics, community health, occupational health, emergency care, rehabilitation or oncology.
- Occupational health nurses develop and implement employee health education programs and provide registered nursing care in private businesses and industry.
- Community health nurses provide health education and registered nursing care in public health units and through home visits, manage complex home care cases, participate in community needs assessment and program development, conduct disease screening and deliver immunization programs.
- Psychiatric nurses provide nursing care, supportive counselling and life skills programming to patients in psychiatric hospitals, mental health clinics, long-term care facilities and community-based settings.
- Nursing consultants provide consultative services to institutes, associations and health care organizations regarding issues and concerns relevant to the nursing profession and nursing practice.
- Nursing researchers engaged in research activities related to nursing are self-employed or are employed by hospitals, public and private organizations and governments.
- Clinical nurses provide leadership, advice and counsel on the provision of research-based care for specific patient groups within the care of particular health care organizations.
Employment Requirements
Registered nurses
- Completion of a university, college or other approved registered nursing program is required.
- Additional academic training or experience is required to specialize in a specific area of nursing.
- A master’s or doctoral degree in nursing is usually required for clinical nurse specialists, clinical nurses, nursing consultants and nursing researchers.
- Registration with a regulatory body is required in all provinces and territories.
Registered psychiatric nurses
- Completion of a university or college registered psychiatric nursing program is required.
- Registration with a regulatory body is required in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia and the Yukon.
All Titles
- ambulatory care nurse
- bedside nurse
- burn patient care nurse
- burn victim care nurse
- cardiac surgery nurse
- cardiology nurse
- cardiology nurse technician
- casual duty nurse
- circulating nurse
- clinic nurse
- clinical nurse
- clinical nurse specialist
- community health nurse
- consultant nurse
- consultant, nursing
- contagious disease transmission prevention nurse
- co-ordinator, infection control – hospital
- coronary intensive care nurse
- coronary unit nurse
- critical care nurse
- dialysis nurse
- doctor’s office nurse
- emergency care nurse
- emergency nurse
- first aid nurse
- float nurse
- general duty nurse
- general duty nurse – psychiatry
- geriatric care nurse
- geriatric nurse
- gerontology nurse
- graduate nurse
- graduate nurse – doctor’s office
- graduate nurse – occupational health
- graduate nurse – physician’s office
- graduate private duty nurse
- graduate religious nurse
- hemodialysis nurse
- home care neuroscience nurse
- home care nurse
- home care nurse, neuroscience
- hospital hygiene nurse
- hospital hygienist – nursing
- hospital nurse
- ICU (intensive care unit) nurse
- independent practice – registered nurse
- industrial nurse
- infection control co-ordinator – hospital
- infection control nurse
- infection control officer – hospital
- infection control officer – medical
- infection surveillance nurse
- intensive care nurse
- intensive care unit (ICU) nurse
- liaison nurse
- medical intensive care nurse
- mental health nurse
- missionary nurse
- nephrology and kidney transplantation nurse
- nephrology and renal transplantation nurse
- nephrology nurse
- neuroscience nurse
- nurse
- nurse – birthing room
- nurse consultant
- nurse counsellor
- nurse employed at national level
- nurse of Native ancestry
- nurse researcher
- nurse technician
- nurse, contagious disease transmission prevention
- nurse, geriatric
- nurse, hospital hygiene
- nursing adviser
- nursing consultant
- nursing counsellor
- nursing evaluator
- nursing researcher
- nursing researcher – nurse
- nursing technician
- obstetrics nurse
- occupational health nurse
- occupational health nurse consultant
- occupational medicine nurse
- office nurse
- officer, infection control – hospital
- on-call nurse
- oncology nurse
- operating room (OR) nurse
- OR (operating room) nurse
- out-patient clinic nurse
- outpost nurse
- outreach nurse
- palliative care nurse
- pediatric intensive care nurse
- pediatric nurse
- perinatal care nurse
- physician’s office nurse
- primary care nurse
- primary nurse
- private care nurse
- private duty nurse
- psychiatric and mental health nurse
- psychiatric nurse
- public and community health nurse
- public health nurse
- public health nurse consultant
- recovery room nurse
- Red Cross nurse
- registered community health nurse
- registered industrial nurse
- registered nurse – call centre
- registered nurse – contact centre
- registered nurse – independent practice
- registered nurse – public and community health
- registered nurse – telehealth
- registered nurse (R.N.)
- registered psychiatric nurse (R.P.N.)
- registered public health nurse
- religious nurse
- respiratory care nurse
- respiratory nurse specialist
- RN (registered nurse)
- RPN (registered psychiatric nurse)
- school health nurse
- school nurse
- scrub nurse
- staff nurse
- surgical intensive care nurse
- telehealth registered nurse
- tele-nurse
- triage nurse
- Victoria Order nurse
- Victorian Order of Nurses (VON) nurse
- visiting nurse
- VON (Victorian Order of Nurses) nurse
- ward nurse
- youth centre nurse
Exclusions
- Nurse practitioners (See 3124 Allied primary health practitioners)
- Nursing co-ordinators and supervisors (3011)
- Nursing service managers (See 0311 Managers in health care)
- Registered practical nurses (See 3233 Licensed practical nurses)