North Carolina Administrative Code › Title 21 - OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS › Chapter 36 - NURSING › Section .0100 - GENERAL PROVISIONS › Section 36 .0120 - DEFINITIONS

Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 2, July 15, 2024
The following definitions apply throughout this chapter
				  unless the context indicates otherwise:
(1) "Administrative Law Counsel" means an
				attorney licensed to practice in this State whom the Board has retained to
				serve as procedural officer for contested cases.
(2) "Academic term" means one semester of a
				school year.
(3)
				"Accountability/Responsibility" means being answerable for action or inaction
				of self, and of others in the context of delegation or assignment.
(4) "Accredited institution" means an
				institution accredited by a United States Department of Education-approved
				institutional accrediting body.
(5)
				"Active Practice" means activities that are performed, either for compensation
				or without compensation, consistent with the scope of practice for each level
				of licensure as defined in
				G.S.
				90-171.20(4), (7), and
				(8).
(6) "Advanced Practice Registered Nurse
				(APRN)" means a nurse practitioner, nurse anesthetist, nurse-midwife, or
				clinical nurse specialist.
(7)
				"Assigning" means designating responsibility for implementation of a specific
				activity or set of activities to an individual licensed and competent to
				perform such activities.
(8)
				"Bulletin" means the official publication of the Board.
(9) "Clinical experience" means application
				of nursing knowledge demonstrating clinical judgment in a current or evolving
				practice setting in which a student provides care to clients under the
				supervision of faculty or a preceptor.
(10) "Clinical judgment" means the
				application of nursing knowledge, skills, abilities, and experience in making
				decisions about client care.
(11)
				"Competent" means having the knowledge, skills, and ability to safely perform
				an activity or role.
(12)
				"Continuing Competence" means on-going acquisition and application of knowledge
				and the decision-making, psychomotor, and interpersonal skills expected of the
				licensed nurse resulting in nursing care that contributes to the health and
				welfare of clients served.
(13)
				"Contact Hour" means 60 minutes of an organized learning experience.
(14) "Continuing Education Activity" means a
				planned, organized learning experience that is related to the practice of
				nursing or contributes to the competency of a nurse as outlined in
				21 NCAC
				36 .0223(a)(2).
(15) "Controlling institution" means the
				degree-granting organization or hospital under which a nursing education
				program is operating.
(16)
				"Curriculum" means an organized system of teaching and learning activities
				directed toward the achievement of specified learning objectives and
				outcomes.
(17) "Delegation" means
				transferring to a competent individual the authority to perform a specific
				nursing activity in a selected situation. The nurse retains
				accountability/responsibility for the delegation.
(18) "Debriefing" means an organized learning
				activity that follows a clinical or simulated experience and is led by a
				trained faculty facilitator. Students' reflective thinking is encouraged and
				feedback is provided regarding the students' performance during discussion of
				various aspects of the completed experiences.
(19) "DHSR" means Division of Health Service
				Regulation.
(20) "Dimensions of
				Practice" means aspects of nursing practice, including professional
				responsibility, knowledge-based practice, ethical and legal practice, and
				collaborating with others, consistent with
				G.S.
				90-171.20(4), (7), and
				(8).
(21) "Distance education" means teaching and
				learning strategies used to meet the learning needs of students when the
				students and faculty are not in the same location.
(22) "External standardized examination"
				means a commercially available standardized predictive test that provides
				individual student scores that are linked to a probability of passing the
				NCLEXT examination.
(23) "Faculty
				directed clinical practice" means clinical experiences provided under the
				accountability/responsibility and direction of nursing program
				faculty.
(24) "Focused client care
				experience" means a clinical experience that emulates an entry-level work
				experience in nursing, assisting the student in transitioning to an entry-level
				nursing practice. Supervision may be by faculty and preceptor dyad or direct
				faculty supervision.
(25) "Initial
				Approval" means the status assigned to a newly-established nursing education
				program following submission of a complete application and documented evidence
				of compliance with Section .0300 of this Chapter.
(26) "Interdisciplinary faculty" means
				faculty from professions other than nursing.
(27) "Interdisciplinary team" means all
				individuals involved in providing a client's care who cooperate, collaborate,
				communicate, and integrate care to ensure that care is continuous and
				reliable.
(28) "Learning resources"
				means materials that faculty use to assist students in meeting the expectations
				for learning defined by the curriculum.
(29) "Level of Licensure" means practice of
				nursing by either a licensed practical nurse or a registered nurse, as defined
				in G.S.
				90-171.20(7) and
				(8).
(30) "Level of student" means the point in
				the program to which the student has progressed.
(31) "Maximum enrollment" means the total
				number of pre-licensure students that can be enrolled in the nursing program at
				any one time. The number reflects the capacity of the nursing program based on
				demonstrated resources sufficient to implement the curriculum.
(32) "Methods of Instruction" means the
				planned process through which teacher and student interact with selected
				environment and content so that the response of the student gives evidence that
				learning has taken place, based upon stated course objectives and outcomes for
				learning experiences in classroom, laboratory, simulation, and clinical
				settings.
(33) "National
				Credentialing Body" means a credentialing body that offers certification or
				re-certification in the licensed nurse's or Advanced Practice Registered
				Nurse's specialty area of practice.
(34) "NCLEX-PNT" means the National Council
				Licensure Examinations for Practical Nurses.
(35) "NCLEX-RNT" means the National Council
				Licensure Examinations for Registered Nurses.
(36) "Nursing Accreditation body" means a
				national nursing accrediting body that is recognized by the United States
				Department of Education.
(37)
				"Nursing program faculty" means individuals employed full or part-time by an
				academic institution responsible for developing, implementing, evaluating, and
				updating nursing curricula.
(38)
				"Nursing project" means a project or research study of a topic related to
				nursing practice that includes a problem statement, objectives, methodology,
				and summary of findings.
(39)
				"Participating in" means to have a part in or contribute to the elements of the
				nursing process.
(40) "Pattern of
				noncompliance" means episodes of recurring non-compliance with one or more
				Rules in Section .0300.
(41)
				"Preceptor" means a registered nurse at or above the level of licensure that an
				assigned student is seeking who may serve as a teacher, mentor, role model, and
				supervisor for the student in a faculty-directed clinical experience.
(42) "Prescribing Authority" means the legal
				permission granted by the Board of Nursing and Medical Board for the nurse
				practitioner and nurse midwife to procure and prescribe legend and controlled
				pharmacological agents and devices to a client in compliance with Board rules
				and other applicable federal and State law, regulations, and rules.
(43) "Program Closure" means to cease
				operation of a nursing program.
(44) "Program" means a course of study that
				prepares an individual to function as an entry-level practitioner of nursing.
				The three types of programs are:
(a) Bachelor
				of Science Degree in Nursing (BSN) - Curriculum components for BSN provide for
				the attainment of knowledge and skill sets in the current practice in nursing,
				nursing theory, nursing research, community and public health, health care
				policy, health care delivery and finance, communications, therapeutic
				interventions, and current trends in health care. For this program type, the
				client is the individual, family, group, and community.
(b) Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN)/Diploma
				in Registered Nursing - Curriculum components for the ADN/Diploma in Registered
				Nursing provide for the attainment of knowledge and skill sets in the current
				practice in nursing, community concepts, health care delivery, communications,
				therapeutic interventions, and current trends in health care. For this program
				type, client is the individual, group of individuals, and family.
(c) Practical Nurse Diploma - Curriculum
				components for the practical nurse diploma prepare for providing direct nursing
				care under the supervision of a registered nurse or other health care provider
				as defined by the Nursing Practice Act. Curriculum components provide for the
				attainment of knowledge and skill sets in the current practice of practical
				nursing, communications, therapeutic interventions, including pharmacology,
				growth and development, and current trends in health care. For this program
				type client is the individual or group of individuals.