Help me, Help me, HELP! Work/licensing issue. Thanks.

I'm a little confused as to what your being asked to to, not being from the US not quite sure how advanced practice works over there.

From what I can gather from your post, your being asked to work as an NP in an speciality your not trained in or familiar with. I would say if your employed as a ANP then working there as an RN is irrelevant, if your working at an advanced level then the work is very different to that of an RN.

If that's the case I think the answer is fairly simple. It's beyond your scope of practice and not something you should consider doing.

If you BON requires certifications in the area in which you are asked to work, then the answer is obvious. You cannot do it as you would not be qualified (on paper) even if you are qualified otherwise.

So, looks like your employer will just have to kick and scream.

Kudos to you for investigating this before taking on the assignment. You have probably avoided possible future repercussions, especially if the BON finds out the current NP is not certified in the area as well.

Good luck with your new job.

Hey, you're welcome, AngelfireRN. I kinda figured you knew the answer, but it always helps to have some backup to validate yourself.

Someone please tell me what to do here.

I am certified ACNP. I work for a practice that is hospital-owned. The NP at another part of the hospital is leaving for a week, and I was told that I would be taking her place. I worked for this part as an RN, so I knew the layout, procedures, etc. Perfect setup, right?

Wrong.

After talking with a fellow NP, I inquired as to whether or not I would need an additional collaborating doc, as my doc does not perform the specialty that I am asked to sub for.

No, I was told, you're covered by our med mal insurance. Great! But that does not matter as far as the license goes.

So I contacted my state board. They said NO, NO, NO, do not go over there. I need not only a 2nd collaborator, but also certs in that specialty. So that's that, right?

Wrong again.

Now there's this huge brouhaha, admin telling me that I WILL go, Board telling me that I MAY NOT, and now the director has called the Board to "explain" (read, wheedle) the situation. We are supposed to conference with them in the morning to see if he can talk them into "overlooking" this.

Now, guys, refusing to do this may well be my job, but I have another. I've already turned in my resignation here to go to that job. I'm working a 2 month notice. I'd rather lose my job than my license.

What to do? Other than what I have already decided, that is? I hate leaving them in a bind, but I know they'd throw me under the bus if anything happened over there.

Also, I know for a fact that the NP there now does not have certs in that field. Am I going to bring it up to the Board? No. That's on them. I'm not out to cause trouble. I just want to know, would anyone do any different than me, given the circs?

Thanks in advance.

I'm kind of confused about this. Here, at least ACNPs can work anywhere in the hospital without any other certification. The only places they cannot work is primary care, peds (below 18 or 13 depending on who you ask), and psych. When you are talking about certification are you talking about ACNP vs FNP etc or are you talking about some other certification?

David Carpenter, PA-C