Finishing your NP program and getting established as a practicing NP can be overwhelming. On this page, you will find a number of resources, from form links to practice standards, funding models and beyond.
For Your Information
Getting Started
Professional Practice Documents
There are multiple documents available through CRNA which can aid the new nurse practitioner in their practice.
The following links will help you to locate the following:
Prescribing Standards for NPs: Prescribing Standards for NPs
Scope of Practice for NPs: NP Scope of Practice
Entry-Level Competencies for NPs in Canada: Entry-level Competencies for NPs
Medical Assistance in Dying Standards of Practice for Nurse Practitioners: MAID guidelines for NPs
Cannabis for Medical Purposes: Cannabis Guidelines for NPs
CNPE – Licensing Exam Process
The Canadian Nurse Practitioner Exam (CNPE) is a computer-administered exam with between 180 and 190 questions. These questions can be stand-alone or case-based. The exam is written over one session of four hours, which is approximately 1.26-1.33 minutes per question. There are usually two sittings of the exam annually, one in May and one in October.
Prior to applying for the exam, the graduate NP must obtain confirmation of their program completion for the academic institution conferring their MN-NP degree. There is a form available for this on the CRNA website, which is visible on the registrant side of the CRNA website (College Connect) by following these steps:
Home > Registration requirements > Registered Nurse and Nurse Practitioner Exams. The link to the form is on this page – confirmation of program completion form.
Once CARNA receives this form and two pieces of government-issued ID (one with a photo) to their email nursepractitioners@nurses.ab.ca, they will set up the exam application for you and contact you with details by email.
Other options include the Adult-Gerontology Primary Care NP Certification Exam (administered by the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners), and the Primary Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Certification Exam (administered by the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board).
There is a fact sheet for both exams on the Canadian Council of Registered Nurse Regulators website: http://www.ccrnr.ca/exams.html
Adult – http://www.ccrnr.ca/assets/aanpcb-fact-sheet.pdf
FAA – http://www.ccrnr.ca/familyall-ages.html
NPAA Job Board subscription
One option to look for NP jobs is to subscribe to the NPAA Job Board. We would encourage you sign up for this to have new postings sent to your email. Here is the link to subscribe: https://albertanps.com/category/jobs/
What you should know about funding models
Funding Models in Alberta for NP practice are lacking currently. There are limited opportunities for NPs to practice independently within the community. Here are the options for funding/roles currently.
- Employee of Alberta Health Services – As an NP, if AHS hires you into a role, you are paid a salary that is negotiated with AHS Human Resources or the supervising manager. There is currently little parity across the organization regarding benefits, shift differential etc. There is also a hiring freeze for Non-Unionized Exempt Employees, which NPs fall within at this time.
- Employee of Primary Care Networks – A PCN may hire NPs from within their usual pooled budget. This usually means that a specific physician practice has decided to use their PCN fund allotment to hire an NP and expects that NP to work within the role for which they have hired them. In this situation, you are ‘assigned’ patients from the PCN physicians to provide care for; they are not rostered to you.
- Primary Care Network NP Support Program – A PCN may apply directly to Alberta Health for a position funded through this program. The program intends for NPs to work to their full scope and panel patients to themselves. However, the particular position may have a role that has been decided by the PCN Board, ie; Opioid Dependence Clinic, Women’s Health Clinic, Geriatric Clinic. The funding for the positions is separate from the PCN’s general income, and only provides for a set amount for salary and benefits. Some PCNs give that whole amount as the salary and absorb the benefit costs. Other PCNs reduce the offered salary and use the remaining granted funds to pay for all/part of the NPs’ benefits. Overhead and supply costs are not covered by this program, which must be absorbed either by the PCN or the physician’s office. At times this has been a barrier to full use of the role.
- Private Pay – An NP has the right to open their own practice – they would need to obtain a business licence etc. – and require payment from the individuals whom they see. Some patients may be able to submit claims through third-party insurance companies such as Blue Cross or Sunlife if they have a ‘health spending account’ for reimbursement. Some insurance companies recognize NPs and have a method of compensation for their services. Other insurers do not, and only will accept billing by the NP as an RN, at a reduced rate.
Obtaining your NP license – College of Registered Nurses of Alberta (formerly known as CARNA)
Obtaining your NP license through the Alberta regulatory body is a series of steps and forms that require completion and submission.
Here is the link on the CRNA page to get started: New graduate applicants
With the change to the new CRNA website, it is challenging to see all of the steps once you are already registered. If you have questions about the process, please reach out to them for assistance via the “Send us a message” section at the bottom of the home page – https://nurses.ab.ca
Obtaining your Practitioner Identification number (PracID)
A practice ID is obtained through Alberta Health directly. The PracID allows you to be identified as a licensed practitioner in the province and authorizes you to refer for diagnostic imaging or for consults with other medical practitioners.
Complete the form found at the following link: Practitioner Request Form
If you need further instruction regarding completing this process, visit: Instructions for completing the Practitioner Request Form
As a new NP registering in Alberta, you will need to complete the Practitioner Request form. Select “Practitioner” and complete the indicated fields. You *may* need to join a Business Arrangement (BA), and should confirm this with a future employer. The completed form will need to be returned by fax or mail to the Professional and Facility Management Unit at Alberta Health.
Obtaining VAX/Lab ID
All Practitioners require a laboratory ordering number in order to send samples to Dynalife or the provincial laboratory.
To obtain a laboratory ID, you will need to be set up as a New Provider through Alberta Precision Laboratories. Visit this page on their website to access the Healthcare Provider Information Form: New Provider Set-up Information
If you are going to be working for an employer, they may submit this form for you, as well as set up electronic report delivery access.
This form requires the PracID, so will have to occur after a PracID is issued to you by Alberta Health. Alberta Precision Laboratories require an after-hours contact to facilitate critical reporting and location information for your practice. You will receive a unique Lab ID number for each of your practice locations.
The completed form may be emailed to the laboratory data management team at AHS.Provider_Requests@ahs.ca, faxed to 1-780-644-1792, or submitted electronically.
Netcare and/or Connect Care Access
Netcare and Connect Care access are arranged through your employer. The Health Information Custodian for your work site will need to submit a User Registration Form for you to Alberta Netcare in order to register you as a user and obtain either a hard fob for signing in or a soft token on your cell phone. Netcare allows access to laboratory and diagnostic imaging results, hospital records (admissions and discharges), as well as some specialist reports.
Connect Care is being rolled out slowly across the province in Alberta Health Services. There will be opportunities in the future for community groups to also register for Connect Care access. Inquire with your planned employer to determine what training and registration processes are required.
Registering for the Alberta Tracked Prescription Program
Nurse Practitioners must register with TPP Alberta to order their first traced prescription pads and to prescribe any Type 1 medications that are administered by the program. The program now distributes duplicate pads.
To register, learn more about the program, and obtain your TPP pads, access the program through their website: https://www.tppalberta.ca
To become authorized to prescribe Opioid Agonist Therapy (OAT)
To start, become familiar with the CRNA NP Prescribing Standards: https://nurses.ab.ca/docs/default-source/document-library/standards/prescribing-standards-for-nurse-practitioners.pdf?sfvrsn=c02ca1bf_12
Any NP managing opioid use disorder must follow the appropriate clinical standards and practice guidelines published through the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta, as well as the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. Prior to initiating methadone treatment, the NP must complete a CRNA-recognized prescribing course in opioid use disorder and complete at least two half days with an NP or physician who is experienced in the treatment of Opioid Use Disorder.
One approved course for methadone prescribing is Methadone for Pain in Palliative Care, an online course available at www.methadone4pain.ca. Also available is the course through the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health: www.camh.ca, the British Columbia Centre on Substance Use program: www.bccsu.ca, and the Suboxone Training Program: www.suboxonecme.ca
Obtaining a Workers’ Compensation Board Billing Number
In order to submit any billing claims for services rendered for WCB clients, all NPs must have a WCB billing number. To obtain this number, complete the form found at the following link and submit it either by fax to 780-498-7776/1-800-661-1993 or by mail (the address is on the form).
Community Patient Attachment Registry/Community Information Integration
These two systems work to integrate community care with provincial databases. They identify individuals with a particular community provider and communicate that to the provincial system. This allows health care workers to see that you have primary provider responsibility for a particular individual in the community. It also uploads some basic information from your Electronic Medical Record to Netcare, so other clinicians can see when you saw the individual, and why they were seen. Both systems work to integrate care across the care continuum. If you are working in a community clinic, the office manager should register you as a provider within their clinic, so that your role and responsibilities are clear on CII/CPAR.
General CII/CPAR info: CII/CPAR
CII/CPAR for Primary Care: CII/CPAR for Primary Care
If you have any other suggestions for this toolkit, please send your recommendations to secretary@albertanps.com
And – become a member of the NPAA to start your networking and career now!