Department of Community Services

Revisions Proposed to the Yukon Regulation for Licensed Practical Nurses

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The Licensed Practical Nurses Act [148KB ] provides the general framework for governing licensed practical nurses (LPNs) in Yukon.  The current LPN Regulation under the Act does not allow for full labour mobility, nor does it allow LPNs to fully use their education at work in Yukon as they can in most other jurisdictions in Canada.

Through amendments to the LPN Regulation, Yukon government intends to provide legislation that complies with the Agreement on Internal Trade and allows full labour mobility for all LPNs.  This will mean that any worker certified as an LPN by one jurisdiction in Canada will be recognized as qualified to practise that occupation in any other jurisdiction in Canada.

Most Canadian jurisdictions have already granted their Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) the ability to work to their full scope of practice.  By changing Yukon’s LPN Regulation to include this provision, LPNs who have completed an approved practical nursing program or additional post-basic coursework in Health Assessment, Pharmacology and Medication Therapy will be able to fully use their education at work in Yukon. LPNs who have not yet completed these upgrades will be allowed to work under a limited practice certificate for up to three years until they have completed the necessary coursework to enable them to work to the full scope of practice.

Yukon government is currently working on the amendments to the LPN Regulation together with the LPN Advisory Committee taking into account the results of the recent consultation. An announcement will be made when the amended regulation comes into force.