The International Nurse Regulator Collaborative Mobility Project: Transjurisdictional Mobility—Is It Possible?

Background

The current global environment has led to increased mobility of nurses—and increasing pressure from governments to recruit more nurses into their workforces.

Purpose

To explore whether transjurisdictional mobility was possible, members of the International Nurse Regulator Collaborative (INRC) participated in research to investigate the possibility of recognizing existing licensure or registration and thereby reducing barriers and allowing for more streamlined mobility between INRC jurisdictions.

Methods

Using a mixed methods, multi-phased, multiple-case study design, regulatory processes and practices were investigated in each jurisdiction; findings were then compared across eight participating jurisdictions. Three research phases moved from a high-level jurisdictional overview, through expected standards underpinning nursing practice, to specific operational processes and outcomes. Issues and challenges in licensing/registering transjurisdictional INRC applicants were identified.

Results

A high level of consistency was found in the expectations, standards, and operational processes across jurisdictions. Challenges existed in relation to requirements for and assessments of educational qualifications despite entry to practice competencies and educational program approval requirements being largely the same. Jurisdictional regulators worked under different legislative frameworks, which may potentially create different challenges and timelines for moving toward transjurisdictional mobility. Balancing mobility with the core regulatory responsibility of maintaining public safety will be a key challenge.

Conclusion

Transjurisdictional mobility could potentially exist between jurisdictions with common regulatory principles, processes, and standards. Applicants moving between these jurisdictions present low risk. Streamlining processes could reduce regulatory workload while maintaining safety to the public.