BY JANET FRENCH AND JONATHAN CHARLTON, THE STARPHOENIX
Calling it a “do-or-die” time for the future of registered nurses, RNs from across Saskatchewan are imploring their regulatory body to do everything in its power to stop potential changes they say could put patients at risk.
The tussle between Saskatchewan’s RNs and licensed practical nurses continued Monday, when more than 900 RNs attended a special meeting to discuss proposed changes to nursing regulations in the province.
The governing council of the Saskatchewan Registered Nurses Association took heat from impassioned nurses worried about the fate of patients should LPNs take on more responsibilities.
“I know you’re here to protect the public, but I don’t think you’re doing your job,” said Joan Neufeldt, a palliative care nurse at St. Paul’s Hospital.
Members resolved at the meeting for the SRNA to write to the health ministry opposing the practice changes.
At the heart of the issue is precisely how RNs and licensed practical nurses should divide their workload.
LPNs have called for broader formal responsibilities, saying proposed bylaws cover tasks they already perform on the job. The health ministry subsequently put the planned changes on hold.
“This is registered nurses standing up for their patients and saying, ‘This other provider group does not have the foundational knowledge skills and judgment to care for some of these patients in these areas,’ ” said Colin Hein, a nursing researcher with the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses.
No one from the Saskatchewan Association of Licensed Practical Nurses spoke at Monday’s meeting.
The organization proposed the changes at the government’s prompting.
The SALPN has called SUN’s concerns “hysterical” and inaccurate.
Becoming an LPN requires a minimum of two years of college training. Becoming a registered nurse requires at least a bachelor’s degree. RNs are licensed to perform a wider set of tasks and have a broader foundation of knowledge for decision making.
In particular, Hein said he has concerns about LPNs working in operating rooms, emergency rooms, and labour and delivery.
“These are areas that traditionally LPNs have not worked, or worked in a very minimal role,” he said.
Several nurses echoed those worries Monday, sharing anecdotes of times they saw red flags in a patient’s condition that LPNs did not see.
City Hospital RN Heather Wolch said she feels “physically sick” thinking about the proposed shift in nursing, saying LPNs “struggle with critical thinking” on the job.
Regional health authorities routinely substitute LPNs for RNs, said RN Lenore McMulan. She said she worries new nurses won’t be employable if the practice continues.
Janet Dziadyk, an RN at RUH and St. Paul’s hospitals, said she sees no research supporting the longer list of tasks LPNs wish to perform.
Proposed LPN tasks talk of “stable and predictable” patients, but Dziadyk questioned how many patients are stable and predictable.
SRNA executive director Karen Eisler has said SALPN’s proposed bylaws aren’t specific enough. She also reminded RNs the SRNA regulates nurses and does not advocate for the profession, which “may not be popular.”
Other RNs who train LPNs warned their colleagues they should be careful not to badmouth the professionals they work alongside daily.
“I don’t ever want any of my students to feel like they’re second best,” North Battleford RN Shannon Iverson said.
The SRNA has met with SALPN and the ministry of health twice since the issue became public, Eisler said. They’ve agreed to collaborate on redrafting the bylaws.
SRNA council president Signy Klebeck said she does understand the gravity of the issue. She and Eisler committed to doing a better job of updating nurses about developments.
The SRNA council is next scheduled to meet Nov. 5 and 6, when members are expected to discuss what to do about the resolutions passed at Monday’s meeting.
