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RPN Applicants: Evidence of Practice
If you are not a recent nursing graduate and CNO asks you to submit a verification of nursing practice form that provides evidence of recent nursing practice information,CNO will assess the information you provide to determine if you meet the evidence of practice requirement.
Your verification of nursing practice must include:
- past position(s) in nursing (e.g., staff nurse, researcher, educational instructor)
- practice setting(s), as applicable (e.g., long-term care, acute care hospital, in-patient unit)
- patient population(s) (e.g., geriatrics, paediatrics)
If you were previously registered in another jurisdiction, CNO requires a Verification of Registration form. This form includes evidence of registration in the relevant jurisdiction(s)
For RPN applicants, CNO considers if your nursing practice shows you:
- used your nursing knowledge, skill and judgment
- applied the standards of practice or guidelines relevant to the jurisdiction in which you practised
- affected, directly or indirectly, the delivery of health care services to patients
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Did you complete nursing education that meets the nursing education requirement within the last 3 years? |
 YES |
Requirement met
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NO
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Within the last 3 years, have you practised (i.e., worked or volunteered) as an RPN? |
YES |
Requirement met
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NO
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Has CNO received other information about your experience or nursing education/courses within the last 3 years and determined that it meets the evidence of practice requirement? |
YES |
Requirement met
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NO
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YES
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Have you or will you return to another jurisdiction to practise as an RPN? |
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NO
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Will you follow instructions and successfully complete specified additional education CNO indicates to meet the evidence of practice requirement? |
YES |
Requirement met
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NO
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Review by the Registration Committee |
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Additional education for meeting evidence of practice requirement
Most applicants who don't meet the evidence of practice requirement have the option to complete additional education.
Course content and number of practicum hours depend on the type of registration the applicant is requesting, and the number of years they have been out of nursing practice.
Some applicants may be eligible to participate in a supervised practice experience in Ontario to meet your Evidence of Practice.
Read the Supervised Practice Experience Partnership for more details about the program and eligibility requirements.
RPN applicants who have not practised in 3 – 10 years must complete:
- 400 hours of clinical/practical/consolidation experience
and
- nursing course content related to cultural context, computers, technology, pharmacology, practice standards, health assessment, legal/ethical, gerontology, communication (including mental health strategies), family-centred care, growth development across the life span, chronic illness and hospitalization effects on the family and family dynamics, nursing theory/framework, leadership and anatomy/physiology/pathophysiology.
RPN applicants who have not practised in more than 10 years must complete:
- 600 hours of clinical/practical/consolidation experience
and
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relevant nursing course content related to cultural context, computers, technology, pharmacology, practice standards, health assessment, legal/ethical, gerontology, communication, family-centred care, growth development across the life span, chronic illness and hospitalization effects on the family and family dynamics, nursing theory/framework, leadership and anatomy/physiology/pathophysiology.
Advanced standing
You may wish to ask the school if they can assess your previous education, experience and knowledge (also known as a Prior Learning Assessment Recognition or PLAR), or if they will give you advanced standing for any courses. If you receive advanced standing, the school must indicate this on CNO’s Verification of Course Completion form and provide a letter explaining why it gave you advanced standing.
Applying as both an RN and RPN
If you are applying for registration as both an RN and RPN, you will meet the requirement for both applications by completing the theoretical and clinical practicum, and consolidation hours, that your RN application requires.
