The Nursing Policy Secretariat [NPS] for the BC Ministry of Health is the branch that helps support provincial nursing initiatives, guides policy, and provides a nursing voice to government. Listen as Zak discusses his new role within the BC Ministry of Health, his aspirations for nursing in BC, some of the current priorities of the NPS team, and how these priorities advance nursing practice.
Zak Matieschyn is the provincial Chief Nurse and Executive Director, Nursing Policy Secretariat for the BC Ministry of Health, and a longstanding leader within his profession. He is passionate about advancing nursing practice, policy, and education to optimally support a healthcare system that works for both providers and people in British Columbia, including the province's diverse Indigenous Peoples and other priority populations.
For the past 24 years, Zak has been a proud member of the nursing profession, practicing nursing in a variety of settings including emergency, intensive care, street nursing, vascular access, and outpost nursing, and as a nurse practitioner providing primary care services with a focus on marginalized populations. He continues to maintain a part-time addiction practice in Nelson, BC, providing harm reduction and comprehensive point of care primary care services.
The Nursing Policy Secretariat NPS News: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/health/about-bc-s-health-care-system/heath-care-partners/health-newsletter/nps-newsletter-dec-2022.pdf
Notes for the season acronyms:
Allied Health Professions – other health care providers such as physiotherapists, occupational therapists, nutritionists, speech language pathologists, audiologists, respiratory therapists, and so on.
ARNBC - Association of Registered Nurses of BC
BCCNM - BC College of Nurses & Midwives
BCNU – BC Nurses Union
CNA - Canadian Nurses Association
HHR – Health Human Resource
IEN - Internationally Educated Nurses
LPN – Licensed Practical Nurse
NNPBC – Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of BC (formerly ARNBC)
NBA – Nurses’ Bargaining Association
NPS – Nursing Policy Secretariat within the BC Ministry of Health
RNABC - Registered Nurses Association of BC
RPN – Registered Psychiatric Nurse
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