Accountability and responsibility of registered nurses

Nurse Australia

Registered Nursing in Australia

There a very different degrees of responsibility for nurses and healthcare workers in Australia depending on the amount of training and licensure that each individual has achieved, though at times these delineations and differences in responsibility are easier to identify than at others. Unlicensed healthcare workers, due to their lack of official status, do not really have well-defined responsibilities under the law, though of course they have an ethical responsibility to provide the greatest possible level of care to any and all patients. The law is much more clearly defined when it comes to registered and enrolled nurses. While enrolled nurses have a fair amount of knowledge and training and can be responsible for direct care of patients in many circumstances, they must report to a registered nurse that is ultimately in charge of and responsible for all care decisions that are made regarding a patient (GDU 2011). This means that registered nurses not only have a higher duty of care and a greater expectation of efficacy, but they often have an additional layer of responsibility in the form of their supervisory role over other healthcare workers (GDU 2011).

The statutory requirements for registered and enrolled nurses are also very different, with registered nurses being required to furnish evidence of their academic and professional training, and held directly responsible for patents' care (Meadley 2009). Enrolled nurses must only show evidence of appropriate knowledge to registration entities, and though they can receive additional endorsements with further training there are limits to what they are allowed to prescribe and due for patients (Meadley 2009). Professional limitations reinforce these legal definitions.

Due to the level of qualification and licensure that is required for registered nurses in Australia, their duties often include the delegation and supervision of lower-level nurses and healthcare workers, most specifically enrolled nurses and assistants in nursing, or AINs (Meadley 2009). The legal and professional authority to delegate certain medical responsibilities and to supervise the administering of care by other healthcare workers is conferred to registered nurses upon their licensing and registering with the appropriate government and professional entities, which is itself dependent upon the completion of an accredited academic and professional training program in nursing (Meadley 2009; GDU 2011). Enrolled nurses, on the other hand, retain responsibility for their own actions but are only authorized to perform those tasks that are delegated to them by registered nurses, and enrolled nurses due not serve in any supervisory capacity themselves (RCN 2004; Meadley 2009).