Getting endorsed as a nurse practitioner
This page contains information for nurse practitioners operating in the ACT.
Registered nurses can be endorsed as nurse practitioners by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia if they have additional qualifications and specific expertise that meet the nurse practitioner endorsement standards.
The ACT Office of the Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer will update this information as legislation and policy evolves in the ACT.
Practice authority and scope of practice
Practice authority refers to all the activities a profession is legislatively authorised to perform, whereas scope of practice refers to all activities an individual within that profession is both legislatively authorised to perform, and competent to do.
Nurse practitioners are independent and collaborative practitioners regulated by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA).
Thus, you are fully responsible and accountable for your practice.
An employed scope of practice is determined by yourself and your employer, as relevant to your employed role.
The public sector authorisation process
Nurse practitioners working for the public sector must undergo a formal credentialing process for approval of their employed scope of practice.
Credentialing committees within the ACT public sector are delegated through a legislative instrument approved by the Minister for Health through the Health Act 1993.
The purpose of credentialing is to protect the public and enable full scope of practice within an individual’s employed role.
The private sector authorisation process
Regulated health practitioners working in the private sector, inclusive of nurse practitioners, are not currently required to undergo a formal credentialing process for their employed scope of practice.
However, they must still adhere to professional standards and guidelines for practice established by the NMBA, as well as local regulatory requirements.
It is highly recommended that private sector employers establish contextualised credentialing processes relevant for all health practitioners, which is transparent and relevant to their context, profession, and area of practice.
Like other private sector employers in the health industry, nurse practitioners working in stand-alone clinics are required to adhere to local requirements, such as work health and safety laws.
It is highly recommended you use the Australian Business License and Information Service when setting up your clinic to understand your requirements.
A unique requirement for stand-alone nurse practitioner clinics in the ACT is that you must apply for an infection control licence if you perform any skin penetration procedures in your clinical practice.
This requirement does not apply to general practices who employ medical practitioners.
More information
To find out more about nurse practitioners’ scope of practice and how to gain endorsement, you can review the following resources on the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia website: