The document summarizes the history of nursing regulation and advocacy in British Columbia from 1912 to 2013. It traces the evolution of the Graduate Nurses Association of BC into the Registered Nurses Association of BC (RNABC) in 1918, and later into the College of Registered Nurses of BC (CRNBC) in 2005. Dissatisfaction with CRNBC's restricted mandate led to the formation of the Association of Registered Nurses of BC (ARNBC) in 2010 to fill advocacy and policy gaps. Over time, ARNBC established itself as the provincial nursing association through strategic planning, collaboration with the Canadian Nurses Association, and electing its own board.

1. Where Have We Come From?
A Brief History of ARNBC
Sally Thorne
July 2013

2. 1912
Graduate Nurses Association of BC

3. • 1918 - Registered Nurses established the Graduate
Nurses Association of BC as the body responsible for
regulating registered nursing
• 1935 - Name change to Registered Nurses
Association of BC through amendment of Registered
Nurses’ Act

4. 1981
Labour Relations Division of the RNABC
Becomes the BC Nurses Union

5. 2003 The Health Professions Amendment
Includes the provisions necessary to repeal the
Nurses (Registered) Act and bring registered nursing
(along with medicine, optometry, dentistry, podiatry
and chiropractic) under the Health Professions Act.
The Health Professions Act provides for a new
model of regulating the scope of practice of health
professionals in B.C.

6. Aug 19, 2005
College of Registered Nurses of BC
Key elements of the
Nurses (Registered) and
Nurse Practitioners
Regulation include:
• Duty to report
• Restricted activities without
an order (Section 6)
• (Restricted activities with an
order; clinical order sets
(Section 7)
• Certified Practice (Section 8)

8. CRNBC Annual Report 2005

9. OUR VISION
Excellence in Nursing
OUR VALUES
• Accountability and service to the public
• Visible leadership on nursing and health
issues
• Innovation and openness to change
• Collaboration and mutual respect
• Competence

10. In her 2005 report,
President Karen Irving stated:
Nursing continues to be a self-regulating profession in B.C. and
CRNBC’s mandate remains the same: protection of the public
through the regulation of registered nurses and nurse practitioners
As you can see, much of what RNABC did, CRNBC continues to do.
Yet, the new legislation has meant changes for the organization.
Here are some examples.
– a reduced number of board members and discontinuation of chapters.
– authority to regulate nurse practitioners.
– reserved actions and college-certified practices for registered nurses.
Implementing change often presents challenges. We are confident
that these changes are being managed with minimal inconvenience
to registrants.

11. Devolution of Functions
• Regional Chapters
• Professional Practice Groups
• Nursing BC Magazine
• Membership Cards
• Annual Convention
• Policy Voting

13. MANDATE
To ensure that all individuals seeking entry to
practice and maintaining registration are
competent and ethical professionals. The College
does this by setting standards, supporting
registered nurses to meet standards and acting if
standards are not met.
VISION
A trusted and valued leader in nursing regulation
PURPOSE
Protecting the public by effectively regulating
registered nurses and nurse practitioners

14. BC’s Link to National Nursing Policy

15. As RNABC gradually transformed itself
into the new CRNBC
most nurses:
– did not appreciate the potential impact of
these changes for nursing
or
– believed that CRNBC should still be capable
of enacting many of the advocacy and
policy roles of the profession

17. Perfect Storm

18. Early 2009: Breakfast at the Naam
• Lynette Best
Former CNO,
Providence Health
• Heather Mass
Former CNO,
BC Children’s & Women’s
• Sally Thorne
Director,
UBC School of Nursing

19. A Week Later: Breakfast #2
Core Group of Five
• Paddy Rodney
Faculty
UBC School of Nursing
• Jo Wearing
Former Policy Consultant
RNABC
And the breakfasts continued……

20. Summer 2009: Expanded Consultation
• Invitational
lunch gathering
• Key leaders and
nurses of
influence
• Confidential
strategic
dialogue

21. Puzzling Questions:
• Whether CRNBC’s view about
their restricted mandate was
real or imagined?
• Whether there were any
possibilities of changing the
legislation?
• Whether legal action could
reverse these changes?

22. Ultimate Conclusion
Only four possible options:
• Do nothing
• Take the CRNBC to court
• Try to change the
legislation
• Start something new

23. –Transitional Steering
Committee
– Heather Mass, Sally Thorne
(Co-Chairs)
– Lynette Best, Paddy Rodney,
Maureen Shaw, Sharon
Toohey, Jo Wearing

24. To fill the gaps and explore opportunities for a
more permanent solution

25. May 19, 2010 Province-Wide Meeting
• to explain why it is
necessary to reestablish an association
for registered nurses in
British Columbia and
• broaden ongoing
support for this work

28. May 20, 2010
Association of Registered Nurses of BC was born

29. Board of Directors
Susan Duncan, RN
Robert Calnan, RN
Lynette Best, RN
Julie Fraser, RN
Suzanne Johnston, RN
Leanna Loy, RN
Patricia Rodney, RN
Maureen Shaw, RN
Sally Thorne, RN
Joan Wearing, RN
Staff Support
Heather Mass, RN
Nora Whyte, RN
to April 2011
from May 2011

31. Organizational Realignment

33. ARNBC and CNA MOU
The ARNBC and the Canadian Nurses Association have signed a
Memorandum of Understanding for a one-year period,
effective September 1, 2011.

34. Policy Dialogue
. . . Now more than ever, we need the
knowledge, expertise and capacity of nurses to
bring solutions to our healthcare challenges.
Nurses are, and will continue to be, at the heart
of the system’s transformation, driving and
managing change related to the delivery of
health services
Canadian Nurses Association

35. May 2012 First Official AGM
First elected board members
• Brenda Canitz
• Christine Davidson
• Carl Meadows
• Jennifer Parkhill
• Andrea Starck
• Rachel Bard (CNA)

36. CNA Biennium June 18-20, Vancouver
ARNBC Host Provincial Association

37. BC had 38 voting delegates
presenting 5 of the 17 AGM motions

38. Strategic Planning
• Expand nursing engagement
strategy
• Consolidate sustainability plan
• Strengthen collaborative
partnerships
• Rebuild government and policy
relations

39. June 2013 First Fully Elected Board
• Pam Burton
• Tania Dick
• Maylene Fong