BCCNM is the largest regulator in Western Canada. Our job is to protect the public by regulating nurses and midwives. We do this by working in collaboration with our registrants, employers, and other health-system partners. Here are a few reminders about the expectations for registrants and our partners.
Nurses and midwives
Ensure you hold practising registration
If you are working or volunteering as a nurse or midwife in B.C., you MUST hold practising registration.
We have had a few reports recently of individuals practising without registration. While these individuals did not have malicious intent, they put themselves in jeopardy by violating BCCNM policy and practising without liability protection. Working without practising registration is unlawful, and can also result in penalties and fines.
If you're not sure if you require practising registration for your role, please speak to your manager or employer. If you are working in a role where you do not need practising registration with BCCNM, then you may not report these hours as practice hours on your annual renewal.
Keep your information current
If you change your name, start a new job, move to a new address, or change your email or phone number, you must update it in your BCCNM record. Keeping these records up to date helps build trust with the public and ensures you receive important information from BCCNM.
While not everything is reflected in the public register, BCCNM also provides aggregate demographic and employment data to the Canadian Institute for Health Information, which then informs public policy and statistics.
To update your information, log in to your online account using the same email address and password you use to renew your registration.
Employers
Ensure staff have practising registration
Employers are responsible for verifying the registration status of potential employees and regularly checking the registration status of employed nurses and midwives in BCCNM's public register (midwives and nurses). BCCNM staff can walk employers through the verification process. We can also “batch" verify lists of nurses and/or midwives for you. We cannot stress enough how important it is to ensure your staff are in good standing with the college—this helps protect them, your patients, and your organization.
Working in today's health-care system
We know that it's tough working in health care today. Health-care providers continue to care for those affected by COVID-19, wildfire season is already underway, and workforce shortages persist. We recognize the challenges you are facing and want to reassure you that you are not alone.
As the regulator, we are working within our mandate to support nurses and midwives wherever possible, from working with government to increase the nursing and midwifery workforce to upgrading our systems and processes to provide optimal service.
Our Regulatory Practice Consultants are available to assist you with questions or concerns relating to standards. We also have numerous resources on our website, including:
We consider nurses and midwives partners in our work, and we welcome your thoughts and feedback.
Email us at communications@bccnm.ca.