British Columbia (B.C.) has suffered the loss of multiple lives every day due to the relentless unregulated toxic drug poisoning crisis that has significantly affected this province since 2016 (B.C. Coroners Service, 2023). In September 2020 the B.C. Provincial Medical Health Officer, issued a provincial health order that set wheels in motion to allow registered nurses (RNs) and registered psychiatric nurses (RPNs) to diagnose and prescribe pharmacological treatment for opioid use disorder (Ministry of Health, 2020). This study used a qualitative approach to understand how RNs and RPNs in B.C. experience their expanded role as nurse prescribers of opioid agonist therapy (OAT). Utilizing Sally Thorne’s (2016) Interpretive Description method, a purposeful sample of RNs and RPNs across the province who actively prescribe OAT to people with an opioid use disorder were interviewed about their experience and perceptions. This study was grounded in Patricia Benner’s nursing theory From Novice to Expert, acknowledging prescribing OAT as a new area of professional growth for RNs and RPNs in B.C. Key findings of this study include; insights into the experiences of OAT prescribing RNs and RPNs in Canada; the utilization of SROM (slow release oral morphine) as a medication within scope of RNs and RPNs for the treatment opioid use disorder; unionized position considerations for this nursing practice, and challenging the need for masters preparedness for nurses to engage in OAT prescribing in B.C. Findings within this research are relevant to other Canadian provinces considering implementing RN/RPN OAT prescribing as a strategy to increase access to pharmacological treatment for people with opioid use disorder.
Keywords: RPN OAT prescribing, RN OAT prescribing, nurse prescribing, opioid agonist therapy, opioid use disorder, toxic drug supply crisis, overdose crisis
