STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3290

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    H.B. No. 2165

 

 

 

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fourth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2008

State of Hawaii

 

Madam:

 

     Your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Affordable Housing, to which was referred H.B. No. 2165 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO NURSING,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to reduce the nursing shortage in the State by providing additional means by which a student may qualify for licensure as a registered nurse.

 

     Specifically, this measure allows a master's degree candidate in a nursing program, who has completed the pre-licensure component of the program at an accredited and Board of Nursing-qualified school of nursing, to apply for a license by examination to practice as a registered nurse.

 

     Testimony in support of this measure was submitted by the University of Hawaii System, the Board of Nursing, the Healthcare Association of Hawaii, and four private individuals.

 

     The Master's Entry Program in Nursing (MEPN) is designed for adult learners with no prior nursing experience or education, who have a baccalaureate degree or higher in another field other than nursing, are leadership bound, and are seeking a career in advanced practice nursing.  The program equips students with entry-level professional nursing competencies as a foundation for advanced practice roles, and was developed by the University of Hawaii at Manoa's School of Nursing and Dental Hygiene in response to the nursing shortage in the State and student interest.  Your Committee finds that providing an additional means to qualify for licensure as a registered nurse by allowing a graduate who has completed the pre-licensure portion of an MEPN to apply for a license as a registered nurse by examination fulfills the intent of this measure, which is to reduce the nursing shortage in the State.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Affordable Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2165, and recommends that it pass Third Reading.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Affordable Housing,

 

 

 

____________________________

RUSSELL S. KOKUBUN, Chair