2023-09-08 10:18:13
(Montreal) The chances are slim, if not zero, that the Order of Nurses of Quebec (OIIQ) will adopt a new exam next spring. According to what The Canadian Press has learned, the Office of Professions would be far from being enthusiastic regarding the idea of adapting the American exam known by the acronym NCLEX-RN.
In reaction to a damning report from the commissioner for admission to professions, the order announced last May its desire to scuttle its own exam to adopt the American national test. The NCLEX-RN is also used in several Canadian provinces to assess the competence of candidates for the nursing profession.
According to the schedule mentioned at the time of the announcement, the OIIQ planned to hold a final event with its own format on September 18, 2023, then adopt the American format in spring 2024. This scenario, however, seems unrealistic.
In order to be able to make this major change in the process of access to the profession, the order has filed a request for modification of the “regulation on the other conditions for the issue of the nursing permit”, confirmed the Office of professions.
This request must be the subject of a legal analysis as well as an evaluation of “the appropriateness of the desired measure and the draft regulatory text which accompanies it”, it is specified. It is this aspect of the approach which seems to be an obstacle.
According to a source familiar with the matter, the Office raised doubts regarding the relevance of translating and adapting the American national examination to the context of Quebec reality. On this subject, the only known experience of a French translation of the NCLEX-RN is that of New Brunswick, where it proved so catastrophic that the Société de l’Acadie and the Student Federation of the Moncton University Campus sued the body that governs the profession in the Atlantic province.
In addition, it must be considered that even if we manage to adapt the format adequately, it will then be necessary to determine a procedure involving all stakeholders in the academic community with a view to possible implementation. Such an operation might take many months, or even a few years.
Furthermore, the Office des professions would have required additional information from the OIIQ following the submission of its request and certain responses are still pending.
In the office of the President of the Treasury Board, Sonia LeBel, to whom the Office des professions reports, we believe that using the NCLEX-RN “cannot constitute a short-term solution”. We assure that the minister is following the file very closely and that this option “must be the subject of a serious analysis to ensure that the examination applies to the Quebec context.”
In a reaction sent by email, the OIIQ indicates that “for the moment, the file is continuing its course” and that “if the deadline were to be pushed back”, the stakeholders will be informed “as quickly as possible”.
Still according to the order, “the work involves the contribution of external partners for whom (it has) no control over deadlines”. In short, we say we comply with the deadlines imposed by the Office of Professions, but the objective remains spring 2024.
At a press conference on Friday morning, the Minister of Health Christian Dubé commented on the matter in turn. He recalled that the government was “not very comfortable with the idea” of adopting the American national exam. He then said he expected the Office of Professions to provide “very clear comments” in the coming weeks.
Warnings
In his report on the fiasco of the low success rate for the September 2022 OIIQ exam, the commissioner for admission to professions raised methodological flaws and weaknesses. He also offered possible solutions to improve the tool, then he warned once morest the temptation to import a foreign format.
“An exam is more than a technical assessment tool, it includes the professional standard and is built around it. The exam also reflects a vision of the profession with regard to which we want to evaluate the aptitude of a candidate,” writes Me André Gariépy in section 7 of part 1 of his progress 2 report.
He adds that a good evaluation must take into account the context of the practice, the organization of the network, the reserved activities, the training received and the legal frameworks.
However, using a tool designed abroad would cause “losing part of the control over the professional standard itself and over the vision of the profession”, he warns. Me Gariépy at the same time foresees consequences on “initial training, the professional system, the effectiveness of public protection and the health system in Quebec”.
Taking all these issues into account, the commissioner emphasizes the importance of approaching such a major change with caution.
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