Nurse Practitioners Code of Practice 2004

Western Australia

Nurses and Midwives Act 2006 2

1.Citation

This code may be cited as the Nurse Practitioners Code of Practice 2004.

2.Interpretation

In this code —

client includes patient;

poison has the meaning given to that term in the Poisons Act 1964 section 5.

3.Nurses Code of Practice 2000 applies to nurse practitioners

The Nurses Code of Practice 2000 applies to a nurse practitioner in addition to this code.

4.Role of other health care workers

(1)Before undertaking treatment of a client, a nurse practitioner should give due consideration to consulting with any other health care worker who may have additional relevant skills or knowledge.

(2)Before undertaking treatment of a client, a nurse practitioner should give due consideration to giving a client a referral to, or advising the client to seek advice from, another health care worker.

5.Diagnostic tests and investigations

(1)A nurse practitioner who —

(a)undertakes a diagnostic test or investigation on a client, or requests that such a test or investigation be undertaken on the client; or

(b)proposes to a client that the nurse practitioner undertake a particular treatment of the client based on the results of such a test or investigation,

should have a detailed knowledge of current science‑based practices and information relating to the test or investigation.

(2)A nurse practitioner who, based on the results of a diagnostic test or investigation, proposes to a client that the nurse practitioner undertake a particular treatment of the client, should have given due consideration to consulting with any other health care worker who may have additional relevant skills or knowledge in the interpretation of the results of such a test or investigation.

6.Supplying and prescribing poisons

(1)Before proposing to a client that the nurse practitioner undertake a particular treatment of the client involving a poison the nurse practitioner should give due consideration to consulting with another health care worker who may have additional relevant skills or knowledge.

(2)A nurse practitioner who supplies or prescribes a poison for a client should —

(a)follow best clinical practice for the prescription of poisons and related record keeping; and

(b)have a detailed knowledge of current science‑based practices and information relating to the poison.

7.Awareness of laws relating to nurse practitioners

A nurse practitioner should ensure that she or he is informed in relation to Commonwealth and State laws affecting the practice of nurse practitioners, including subsidiary legislation, common law and professional codes of practice and ethics that may be in force from time to time.

Notes

1This is a compilation of the Nurse Practitioners Code of Practice 2004. The following table contains information about that code 1a.

Compilation table

Citation	Gazettal	Commencement
Nurse Practitioners Code of Practice 2004	11 Jan 2005 p. 95-6	11 Jan 2005

1aOn the date as at which this compilation was prepared, provisions referred to in the following table had not come into operation and were therefore not included in this compilation. For the text of the provisions see the endnotes referred to in the table.

Provisions that have not come into operation

Short title	Number and year	Assent	Commencement
Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (WA) Act 2010 s. 15(1)(a) 3	35 of 2010	30 Aug 2010	To be proclaimed (see s. 2(b))

2The Nurse Practitioners Code of Practice 2004 formerly made under the Nurses Act 1992 s. 9 now continues under the Nurses and Midwives Act 2006 as if they had been issued under s. 100 of that Act.

3On the date as at which this compilation was prepared, the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (WA) Act 2010 s. 15(1)(a) had not come into operation. It reads as follows:

15.Codes of practice, regulations and rules repealed

(1)These Codes of Practice are repealed:

(a)the Nurse Practitioners Code of Practice 2004;