APRN Practice Guidelines

Scopes of practice vary between the four types, or roles, of APRNs. APRNs roles include CNM, CNP, CRNA, and CNS. APRN scopes also vary within the same role and specialty or focus area of the APRN.

All nurses are responsible and accountable for the care they provide and they must practice within their area of education, licensure role and focus area, competence, and experience. The scope of an APRN's practice, defined as tasks or activities they provide, varies between them. Therefore, the Board approved the APRN Practice Guidelines & Decisioning Algorithm to help APRNs and employers determine if a task, intervention or role may be within an APRN’s scope.

APRNs should also refer to the Board's Advisory Statement on how they should Display Nursing Credentials. 

Refer to the Board's other APRN website pages for more information on CNM, CNP, CRNA, and CNS practice.

The Board endorsed the LACE Network’s Clarifying Statement on age parameters, “Circumstances exist in which a patient, by virtue of age, could fall outside the traditionally defined population focus of an APRN but, by virtue of special need, is best served by that APRN. Such patients may be identified as non-traditional patients for that APRN. In these circumstances, the APRN may manage the patient or provide expert consultation to assure the provision of evidence-based care to these patients.” LACE APRN Network (2012, April 24).  

APRNs who treat patients that are not consistent with the APRN’s foundational education, certification, and licensed APRN role are strongly encouraged to obtain additional formal education and national certification to align with that patient population. However, no matter what an APRN’s role or focus area, an APRN is expected to identify abnormal findings and collaborate and refer conditions outside of their expertise.