Career Overview
Allied primary health practitioners include nurse practitioners, physician assistants and midwives. People in this occupational group provide primary health care and treatment in conjunction with physicians and in collaboration with other health professionals.
Nurse practitioners and physician assistants provide a range of health services to patients and they deliver preventive and continuous care toward managing patients' health. Nurse practitioners work for community health centres, hospitals, clinics and rehabilitation centres. Physician assistants usually work in private practice, including group or team practices, hospitals and clinics.
Midwives provide full-course care to women and their babies during the pre- and post-natal period. They work for hospitals, clinics, birthing centres or in private practices.
Duties
Nurse practitioners perform some or all of the following duties:
- Examine patients and take their medical histories and consult with physicians and other medical practitioners to evaluate patients' physical and mental health
- Order laboratory tests, X-rays and other diagnostic procedures
- Inoculate and vaccinate patients
- Advise patients and their families on health care including health promotion, disease, illness and accident prevention
- Collaborate with members of an interdisciplinary health team such as family physicians, therapists and nutritionists to plan, implement, co-ordinate and evaluate patient care in consultation with patients and their families.
Physician assistants perform some or all of the following duties:
- Conduct patient interviews, physical assessments and take medical histories
- Perform or order diagnostic tests and interpret results
- Formulate and implement treatment plans and monitor patients' progress
- Inoculate and vaccinate patients
- Perform and assist in minor surgery
- Provide health maintenance education
- May participate in research activities.
Midwives perform some or all of the following duties:
- Provide primary, full-course, care to women and their babies during pregnancy, labour, birth and the post-natal period including monitoring the health of mother and baby
- Manage labour and spontaneous normal deliveries
- Care for, assess and monitor the health of newborns and refer infants to appropriate medical services as required
- Provide advice and guidance regarding care for newborns and young infants.
Earnings
Earnings is income that workers receive in exchange for their labour. Depending on the type of employment, earnings can be in the form of wages (hourly), salaries (fixed monthly or annual) or self-employed earnings.
Work Environment
# Workers Employed
800% Employed Full Time
44%Nurses mainly work in health-care facilities, such as hospitals, clinics, residential facilities, and doctor's offices as independent practitioners or team members. Community and public health nurses travel to patients' homes, schools, businesses, community centres or other sites.
Most nurses work 8 to 12 hour shifts, usually on rotation, including weekends, evenings, nights and holidays. On average, full-time nurses work 36 to 40 hours per week and part-time work is quite common.
Nurses use lifting devices and follow safety procedures to reduce the risk of workplace injuries and illness. New technologies and policies have resulted in a patient's reduced length of stay (i.e., more day surgeries are performed), which adds to the workload.
Nurses have to cope with the emotional aspects of working with the sick, injured and terminally ill, as well as patients' families.
Career Pathways
Some individuals may work as health-care aides or practical nurses before beginning education for registered nursing.
Registered nurses typically start in an entry level position in a medical or surgical unit.
Increasingly, new graduates are finding employment in community health and specialty areas where new graduates were not previously hired until they gained experience.
With additional certification, registered nurses may specialize in areas such as emergency care, oncology, psychiatric care, critical care, pediatrics, geriatrics, palliative care, rehabilitation or occupational health.
With experience and additional education, nurses can become clinical nurses, nurse educators, nurse managers, care coordinators, clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners.
Registered nurses may progress to supervisory and managerial positions with experience and additional courses.
Related Careers
Occupational Interests
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Job Titles
Education, Training and Skills
Registered nurses must complete a recognized college or university registered nursing program. Other training requirements include:
- Completion of secondary school with appropriate English, math and science courses for admission to nursing programs
- Completion of a bachelor's degree in nursing to practise as a registered nurse
- Passing the Canadian Registered Nurse Exam prior to being licensed
- Additional academic training or experience to specialize in a specific area of nursing
- A master's or doctoral degree in nursing for clinical nurse specialists, clinical nurses, nurse practitioners, nursing educators, nursing consultants and nursing researchers
The Canadian Nursing Association (CNA) offers a voluntary certification program that allows registered nurses to write a national exam in one of 20 areas of specialization. For a list of these programs, visit the CNA website.
Allied primary health practitioners who are certified for an occupation by a regulator elsewhere in Canada can apply for the same certification from the regulator in B.C. Under the terms of the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), most applicants who are transferring their credentials from elsewhere in Canada will not be required to complete additional training or testing. However, the B.C. regulator may ask applicants to provide further information such as a letter of good standing, references, or criminal record check.
For those who trained outside of Canada and never received certification from any Canadian jurisdiction, a full assessment is likely needed. Most occupational regulators have a process for assessment and recognize internationally trained applicants.
Contact the BC College of Nurses and Midwives for details on how to apply for certification in B.C.
For information about labour mobility in Canada, visit www.workersmobility.ca.
View a list of Professional Regulatory Authorities in B.C.
Education programs in B.C.
The following program areas are related to this occupation:
- Registered Nursing (RN) Related
Skills
Every job calls for a certain set of skills. Knowing those skills is the first step in finding a good career fit.
Here, you will find the 10 most relevant workplace skills. Some are more important to achieving success in a certain career than others. These skills may come naturally to you or you may need to gain them through education, training and experience.
See the list of work-related skills below, ranked in order of importance for this career. Check out the list and see if this career matches your skills—take that first step!
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Talking to others to share information effectively.
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Keeping track of and assessing your performance, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Understanding how new information could be used to solve current and future problems in making decisions.
Actively looking for ways to help people.
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Being able to solve novel, ill-defined problems in complex, real-world settings.
Labour Market Statistics
Discover data, facts and information that have been gathered and analyzed. Learn about the characteristics of the economy and labour market in B.C.
Employment
Find out about employment types and trends by region and industry.
Employment
800Employment by Region
Region | Employment (2022) | % Employment of this Occupation |
---|---|---|
Cariboo | 50 | 3.1% |
Kootenay | 60 | 5.0% |
Mainland/Southwest | 840 | 57.5% |
North Coast and Nechako | N/A | 2.5% |
Northeast | N/A | 0.0% |
Thompson-Okanagan | 140 | 10.6% |
Vancouver Island/Coast | 230 | 20.6% |
Labour Market Outlook
The B.C. Labour Market Outlook is a 10-year forecast of the expected supply and demand for labour in the province. It’s usually updated every year. The purpose is to provide British Columbians with the knowledge to make informed decisions on careers, skills training, education and hiring.
Forecasted Job Openings (2022-2032)
730Forecasted Job Openings
Forecasted Employment Growth Rate
Composition of Job Openings
Job Openings by Region (2022-2032)
Region | Job Openings | Avg. Annual Employment Growth |
---|---|---|
Cariboo | 0 | 1.8% |
Kootenay | 0 | 1.6% |
Mainland/Southwest | 470 | 2.6% |
North Coast and Nechako | N/A | N/A |
Northeast | N/A | N/A |
Thompson-Okanagan | 100 | 2.5% |
Vancouver Island/Coast | 110 | 3.0% |
Industry Highlights
Learn about the opportunities in B.C.'s major industries, including employment trends, earning potential, locations of work and more.
Forecasted Job Openings by Industry
Industry | Job Openings (2022-2032) |
---|---|
Health Care and Social Assistance | 149,700 |
Public Administration | 49,200 |
Finance, insurance and real estate | 50,900 |
Insights from Industry
A growing and aging population will require more health services, which will result in an increased demand for registered nurses. Government has annually increased funding for health services and facilities, which will contribute to the increase in new job openings for nurses.
The current demand for nurses in all regions and settings in the province is strong. However, the current supply of nurses and new graduates is in short supply, particularly in northern and rural regions. To address this situation, the B.C. provincial government has created additional training spaces in public post-secondary institutions, and has offered loan forgiveness to nursing graduates who commit to work in under-served regions of the province.
The demand for nurses in specialty areas, such as operating rooms, emergency rooms and critical care is also strong, with many openings in the Mainland/Southwest region. In addition, experienced registered nurses and specialty nurses are also needed to teach students and train new graduates. The demand for nurse educators is increasing as many current nursing educators are nearing retirement. Other areas, such as medical-surgical units are also having a hard time recruiting and retaining registered nurses.
The role of nurses is expanding as governments consider ways to control increasing health-care costs. One approach is offering basic care through a mixed team that consists of doctors and other health professionals. Nurses would work alongside doctors and provide patient care in situations where a doctor's skills are not required. These workers are called nurse practitioners, which is a new, self-directed role for nurses.
The number of registered nurses working in residential/complex care is expected to decrease due to cost pressures and the current shortage of registered nurses. There is also a trend towards providing assisted living rather than intermediate care facilities. This will further reduce the employment opportunities for registered nurses in complex care. As a result, several health-care authorities are now introducing LPNs into home care nursing.
Resources
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B.C. Ministry of Healthwww.gov.bc.ca/health
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BC Nurses’ Union (BCNU)www.bcnu.org
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Canadian Association of Midwives – Job Opportunitiescanadianmidwives.org/job-listings
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Canadian Association of Midwives (CAM)canadianmidwives.org
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Canadian Association of Physician Assistants (CAPA)capa-acam.ca
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Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU)nursesunions.ca
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Canadian Nurses Association (CNA)www.cna-aiic.ca/en
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College of Midwives of British Columbiacmbc.bc.ca
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College of Registered Nurses of British Columbia (CRNBC)www.crnbc.ca
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Doula Services Association (Birth and Postpartum Doulas in British Columbia)www.bcdoulas.org
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Midwives Association of British Columbia (MABC)www.bcmidwives.com
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Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of British Columbia (NNPBC)www.nnpbc.com