HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

654

TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2013

H.D. 2

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

RELATING TO NURSING.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 


     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that the Institute of Medicine has asserted that effective workforce planning and policymaking require better data collection and an improved information infrastructure.  The legislature also finds mention in the Institute of Medicine's recommendations for building an "infrastructure for the collection and analysis of interprofessional health care workforce data" and collaboration among state licensing boards, state nursing workforce centers, and the United States Department of Labor in the effort to ensure that the data are timely and publicly accessible.

     The legislature further finds that the Hawaii center for nursing and the University of Hawaii school of nursing and dental hygiene have collaborated with the department of health, department of human services, department of commerce and consumer affairs, department of labor and industrial relations, Hawaii workforce development council, board of nursing, and all accredited schools of nursing in the State to ensure timely and publicly accessible data.

     The legislature additionally finds that the center for nursing has collected nursing-related data through various surveys, including five annual surveys related to nursing programs, three biennial census surveys of registered nurses, and a census survey of licensed practical nurses.  The legislature also finds that center for nursing surveys are a valuable way to collect important nursing-related data, and a response to these surveys should be requested.

     Therefore, the purpose of this Act is to:

     (1)  Require the professional and vocational licensing division of the department of commerce and consumer affairs to collaborate with the center for nursing to enable the center to obtain nursing-related data;

     (2)  Require the professional and vocational licensing division to provide the center for nursing with various information through a memorandum of understanding; and

     (3)  Request completion of a survey developed by the center for nursing as part of the license renewal requirements under chapter 457, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

     SECTION 2.  Section 304A-1407, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "[[]§304A-1407[]]  Collaboration with the center for nursing(a)  The University of Hawaii school of nursing and dental hygiene, the state board of nursing, other schools of nursing within the State, professional nursing organizations, employers in the healthcare industry, and labor unions representing nurses and healthcare workers shall collaborate with the center for nursing and provide workforce data to the center for nursing when requested.

     (b)  The professional and vocational licensing division of the department of commerce and consumer affairs shall collaborate with the center for nursing to enable the center for nursing to obtain nursing-related data including, but not limited to, workforce data of nurses licensed in the State.  Workforce data may be obtained through online surveying or other cost-effective, efficient methods.  A survey developed by the center for nursing and deemed necessary by the center for nursing shall be requested as part of the license renewal requirements under section 457-9(a).  Through a memorandum of understanding with the center for nursing, the professional and vocational licensing division shall provide nurse licensee contact information including, but not limited to, electronic mail addresses, to enable the center for nursing to:

     (1)  Collect and analyze data;

     (2)  Prepare and disseminate written reports and recommendations regarding the current and future status and trends of the nursing workforce;

     (3)  Conduct research on best practices and quality outcomes;

     (4)  Develop a plan for implementing strategies to recruit and retain nurses; and

     (5)  Research, analyze, and report data related to the retention of the nursing workforce, in accordance with section 304A-1406."

     SECTION 3.  Section 457-9, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

     "(a)  The license of every person licensed, recognized, or granted prescriptive authority shall expire on June 30 of every odd-numbered year and shall be renewed biennially, except as provided in this section.  Biennially in each odd-numbered year, the board shall make available an application for renewal of license before the deadline set forth by the board to every person to whom a license was issued or renewed during the biennium.  The applicant shall complete the application and submit it to the board with a renewal fee and all required documents on or before the deadline set by the board.  The applicant shall provide documents from proper agencies or parties of any criminal conviction or any disciplinary action taken or pending in this State or any other state in the United States or any territory or possession under the jurisdiction of the United States within the two years prior to application for renewal of license.  As part of the license renewal process, each applicant shall be requested to complete a survey developed by the center for nursing as deemed necessary by the center for nursing pursuant to section 304A-1407(b).  Upon receipt of the application and fee, the board shall verify the accuracy of the application and issue to the applicant a certificate of renewal for the biennium expiring two years hence on the deadline set by the board.  The renewal shall render the holder thereof a legal practitioner of nursing for the period stated on the renewal form."

     SECTION 4.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 5.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval.



 

Report Title:

Nursing-Related Data; Nursing; Licensing

 

Description:

Requires the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Professional and Vocational Licensing Division to collaborate with the Center for Nursing to enable the Center to obtain nursing-related data.  Provides that the workforce data may be obtained through online survey or other means. (HB654 HD2)

 

 

 

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