Maintaining Nursing Practice Standards While Changing With Times: Sanc Perspective
Journal Title: Biomedical Journal of Scientific & Technical Research (BJSTR) - Year 2018, Vol 4, Issue 5
Abstract
According to the South African Nursing Council (SANC), based on the Nursing Act, 33 of 2005, the practice of nursing/midwifery is grounded and embedded in articulated standards and ethical values and supported by a system of professional regulations (SANC sa). In 2004, the SANC published a Charter of Nursing Practice Draft 1 (chapter 4) on Standards for Nursing Practice [1]. This chapter is discussed in conjunction with the commitment of the profession of nursing [1]. Furthermore, the South African Nursing Council (2013) provided nurses with a code of ethics for nurses to render excellence in professionalism and advocacy for healthcare users. This code of ethics serves as a reminder to nursing practitioners of their responsibilities to protect, promote and restore health, to prevent illness, preserve life and alleviate suffering to their patients and clients. The code of ethics further serves as a declaration by nurses that they will always provide due care to the public and health care consumers to the best of their abilities while supporting each other in the process. This paper highlights the draft standards provided by the SANC and identify desirable behaviours, challenges and solutions for all the nurses registered under the SANC and working in public and private health institutions in South Africa. The standards of professional nursing practice are authoritative statements of the duties that all registered nurses, regardless of role, population, or speciality, are expected to perform competently [2]. As times change everything around demands change, and the behaviour of nurses around standards of professional practice are expected to change with the dynamics of the nursing profession. As the voice of all nurses, the role of the International Council of Nursing (ICN) is to ensure quality nursing care for all, maintain sound policies globally, ensure advancement of nursing knowledge, promote the presence worldwide of a respected nursing profession, and ensure a competent and satisfied nursing workforce. ‘Be the change you want to see in the world’ [3]. The question that arises is whether nursing practitioners in South Africa do take responsibility, act positively and create favourable working conditions as a priority. Child [4] found that “nursing in South Africa is in crisis”. According to the South African Nursing Council (SANC), based on the Nursing Act, 33 of 2005, the practice of nursing/midwife ry is grounded and embedded in articulated standards and ethical values and supported by a system of professional regulation (SANC sa). Therefore, preparation of nurse practitioners should encourage change while at the same time emphasizing maintaining practice standards. In 2002, a study to examine and evaluate nursing practice standards in a selected province in South Africa, experienced depressing moments throughout the research and revealing sheer negligence on the part of some nurse practitioners. The study concluded that the quality of professional conduct by nursing practitioners in clinical nursing care was inadequate in accordance with the standards and criteria set out for public hospitals [5]. The framework for practice of registered nurses in Canada addresses the person, health, environment and nursing as intertwined [6]. Under practice standards for regulated members, the College of Registered Nurses of Nova Scotia (CRNNS, 2017) further prescribes provision of knowledge-based practice, service to the public, and clinical practice, responsibility and accountability. The American Nursing Association practice standards tally with the nursing process steps [2].
Authors and Affiliations
Bethabile Lovely Dolamo
Keywords
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- EP ID EP591583
- DOI 10.26717/BJSTR.2018.04.001103
- Views 221
- Downloads 0
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