December 2004 Bulletin

• ATTENTION!
• Maine Nurse Volunteer Corps
• Online Renewal Capability Coming Soon
• Updates from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN)
• Nurse Licensure Compact Update
• Professional Associations in Maine
• NCLEX "First Time" Test Takers Pass Rates
  
• Disciplinary Action
  

ATTENTION!

Please contact the Board office if you have in your employ or know the whereabouts of the following licensees: Jeffrey T. Skelton, LPN; last known address was in Portland, Maine, Renee M. Giobbi, LPN; last known
address was in Old Orchard Beach, ME.

Maine Nurse Volunteer Corps

The Maine Bureau of Health and the Maine State Board of Nursing are collaborating to establish a Maine Nurse Volunteer Corps whose purpose
will be to create an identifiable group prepared to respond to public health emergencies in Maine, whether natural disasters or terrorist imposed.

The primary role of the nurses will be to work in clinics organized to administer medications and/or vaccinations to the people in the State of Maine in an emergency.

Potential volunteers may call the Office of Public Health Emergency preparedness
at 287-3796; or e-mail sue.dowdy@maine.gov ; or, clip the form below and mail to:

Office of Public Health Emergency Preparedness
286 Water Street, 8th Floor
State House Station 11
Augusta, ME 04333-0011

Name: _______________________________________________________________
Address: _______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Phone: _______________________________________________________________
E-mail: _______________________________________________________________

Once the Office of Public Health Emergency Preparedness hears from you, you will be sent an application form and information about training.

Online Renewal Capability Coming Soon

The Maine State Board of Nursing has been working with InforME to establish a system for online renewals of registered and practical nurse license and for renewal of "approval to practice" as an advanced practice registered nurse. InforME is a collaborative effort between the state of Maine and New England Interactive, LLC, which helps Maine government entities Web-enable their information services. InforME also manages, and markets the state of Maine's official web site: www.maine.gov

We expect to offer this function in April, 2005. The URL will be:
http://www.informe.org/bon
Please check periodically as the next Bulletin may be published
after the site is made live.

Updates from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN)

At the August, 2004 Delegate Assembly,

• Elections were held for president, vice-president, treasurer, and directors-at-large to serve on the Board of Directors.
  
  Election results included:
  

  President:	Donna M. Dorsey, MS, RN, FAAN (reelected) Executive Director, Maryland Board of Nursing
  Vice-President:	Polly Johnson, MSN, RN Executive Director, North Carolina Board of Nursing
  Treasurer:	Sandra Evans, MA Ed, BSN, RN (reelected) Executive Director, Idaho Board of Nursing
  Directors-At-Large:	John Brion, PhD, MS, RN Executive Director, Ohio Board of Nursing Constance B.Kalanek, PhD, RN Executive Director, North Dakota Board of Nursing

  
  
  

  Continuing Board Members (Area Directors):

  Area I Director:	Gregory Harris, Public Member of Arizona Board of Nursing
  Area II Director:	Mary Blubaugh, Executive Director, Kansas Board of Nursing
  Area III Director:	Mark Majek, Operations, Texas Board of Nursing
  Area IV Director:	Myra A. Broadway, Executive Director, Maine State Board of Nursing

  
  
• The new NCLEX-PN® test plan was adopted - effective April, 2005. The test plan is an integral document to construct each administration of the NCLEX-PN® examination. Test plans are available for purchase from NCSBN or may be accessed for no charge from the NCSBN web site at: www.ncsbn.org.
  
  
• The revised NCSBN model Nursing Practice Act and Rules were adopted.
  
  

For more information on NCSBN activities, projects and research results, please visit the web site at www.ncsbn.org.

Nurse Licensure Compact Update

Nurses with a multistate privilege from another Compact state do not have to declare Maine as their home state. There is no time requirement for them to obtain a Maine license. They are simply practicing on the privilege that the license from the other Compact state affords. ONLY if nurses meet residency requirements will they then have to obtain a Maine license. Maine will recognize the licensee's right to practice in Maine if they have a multistate privilege from any of the following: ( COMPACT states) Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Wisconsin. We anticipate an implementation date of January 1, 2005 for Virginia. New Jersey has not yet set a date for implementation.

Other states who are exploring joining the Nurse Licensure Compact include: Massachusetts, Ohio, Oregon, Florida, Nevada, Michigan, South Carolina, Kentucky, Indiana, New Hampshire, and Missouri. For current information and updates, please check the following website: www.ncsbn.org

Professional Associations in Maine

It is not the intent of this article to represent all the nursing organizations in Maine. It is intended to alert you to the fact that whatever your interest, whatever your specialty, there is likely an organization that fits your needs. Four major associations that may be able to assist you with information regarding professional associations include:

FYI: 2005 Maine Nursing Summit: Wednesday, May 25, 2005 at the Augusta Civic Center from 8:30 - 4:00 P.M. If you have any questions, please contact Jane Kirschling at jane.kirschling@usm.maine.edu

NCLEX "FIRST TIME" TEST TAKERS PASS RATES

Practical Nurses: For the year October 1, 2003 through September 30, 2004, 28 first time candidates educated in Maine wrote the NCLEX examination for practical nurses and 28 passed, a 100% pass rate. The national pass rate for the same time period for first time takers was 88.94%. (The total number of P.N. candidates nationally was 47,795; 42,511 passed the first time).

Registered Nurses: For the year October 1, 2003 through September 30, 2004, 525 first time candidates educated in Maine wrote the NCLEX examination for registered nurses and 420 passed, an 80% pass rate. The national pass rate for the same time period was 85.41%. (The total number of first time candidates educated in U.S. jurisdictions: 85,532 R.N. candidates; 73,057 passed first time for 85.41% pass rate)

NCLEX-RN "FIRST TIME" TEST TAKERS PASS RATES
For the year October 1, 2003 through September 30, 2004

When reviewing statistics, keep in mind absolute numbers as well as percentages. (Percentages for smaller absolute numbers can vary widely.)

Disciplinary Action

Licensees fined from 09/01/2004 - 12/13/04 for practicing during lapsed license Status: 31

Complaints Dismissed from 09/01/2004 - 12/09/04: 55

In this section, disciplinary actions are reported as a matter of public information. What may or may not be known to the reader is the reason for the particular action. Sometimes actions are taken for: incompetence; criminal conviction(s); fraudulently obtaining a license or renewal of license (i.e. lying on the application); unprofessional conduct such as practicing beyond one's scope, inaccurate recording, falsifying documentation, violating confidentiality of information, failing to follow policies and procedures in the practice situation designed to safeguard the patient, diverting drugs supplies or property of patients or health care provider, practicing nursing when unfit to perform procedures and make decisions in accordance with the license held because of physical, psychological or mental impediment (please see Chapter 4 under Rules on the Board's web site at http://www.maine.gov/boardofnursing ).