Nursing Explained™

Lessons / Safe care

Why can an EN do a task at one hospital but not the next?

Short · 1:36 · with Josh · Last updated

Kip's still colouring this one in.

Premieres Fri 11 Dec, 7 pm AEST Brisbane (8 pm AEDT, 10 pm NZDT). The notes below are ready now. Subscribe on YouTube to catch it first.

Grab the one-page study card (PDF)

Unlocks when the video premieres Fri 11 Dec, 7 pm AEST Brisbane (8 pm AEDT, 10 pm NZDT). Free, A4, no sign-up.

The question

My friend has the same enrolled nurse Diploma and gives IV medicines at her hospital, but mine says ENs don't: is one of them wrong, and how do I know what I'm cleared to do?

Understand

Same Diploma, same task, and one hospital says yes while another says no. Your Diploma is where your scope starts, not the whole story: the law, the national standards, your employer's policy and your own education and competence all shape what you may do. As a student you work under a registered nurse's supervision: check your hospital's policy, and if you're unsure a task is in your scope, say so and ask.

Alex, Sam and Jess are fictional. Policies vary by hospital and state: follow yours.

  1. Scope is what you are educated, authorised and competent to do. The Diploma is the minimum the standards are built on.
  2. Four things shape it: the law, the national standards, your employer's policy and checks, and your own competence.
  3. Workplaces differ, so the same Diploma can mean different tasks. Neither hospital is necessarily wrong.

Key takeaways

  • Treat the Diploma as where scope starts, not the whole list.
  • Check your hospital's policy: ENs follow their employer's policies, and employers must be satisfied staff are competent.
  • Unsure a task is in your scope? Say so, and ask your supervising nurse.
  • Policies vary by hospital and state: follow your local policy.

In practice

  • Check your hospital's policy before you assume a task is yours.
  • Unsure? Say so, and ask your supervising nurse.
  • A student works under RN supervision: ask before any task you haven't been shown.

In one line

Your Diploma starts your scope: check your hospital's policy, then ask your RN.

Check yourself

A new graduate EN moves to a hospital where ENs don't give IV medicines. Is it wrong?

Show the answer

Not necessarily. Policy, checks and law shape scope. Check the policy, then ask your RN.

Got it? Nice. Kip's proud of you.

Words to know

Scope of practice
what you are educated, authorised and competent to do
Delegation
an RN handing a task over after checking it is safe
Accountable
answerable for a decision

Transcript

Read the narration

Same Diploma, same IV medicines: one hospital says yes, the other says no. Why? Alex, the student nurse, asks her supervisor, Sam. My friend Jess is an enrolled nurse.

She gives IV medicines. Here, ENs don't. Is one hospital wrong? Neither. But guessing what you're cleared to do isn't safe for your patient.

Four things shape your scope, what you're cleared to do. The law: national, state and territory. The national standards, built on the Diploma as the minimum.

Your employer: the hospital must be satisfied you're competent, and you follow its policy. And you: your own education and competence. Take IV medicines. An EN can give them only after IV medicines education, and the national register doesn't show who's done it.

So each hospital checks, and may want a sign-off, back-up and the right mix of staff first. That's the employer lock, and one reason Jess's hospital says yes and Alex's says no.

So who was wrong, Jess's hospital or Alex's? Neither. As a student, you work under a registered nurse's supervision. Unsure a task is in your scope?

Say so. Your Diploma starts your scope: check your hospital's policy, then ask your RN.

Sources

  1. NMBA, Enrolled nurse standards for practice (2016): Diploma is the minimum; scope varies with context and education; employer's RN supervision; clarify your role with the supervising RN (read 5 November 2026)
  2. NMBA, Decision-making framework for nursing and midwifery (2020, updated 2022): the layers of law, standards, employer policy and the person; organisational support; delegation, accountability (read 5 November 2026)
  3. NMBA, Fact sheet: Scope of practice and capabilities of nurses: scope is influenced by setting, competence and the service provider's policy (read 5 November 2026)
  4. NMBA, Fact sheet: Enrolled nurses and medicine administration: IV medicines need IV education, not shown on the register; employers must be satisfied staff are competent (read 5 November 2026)
  5. NMBA, FAQ: Enrolled nurse standards for practice: ENs follow their employer's policies (read 5 November 2026)
  6. Nursing Council of New Zealand, FAQs enrolled nurse scope (2025): hospital policies vary, check your organisation's policies (read 5 November 2026)

Checked against these sources at the time of publishing. Sources change, so check the date above and your local policy. Spotted an error? Tell us and we'll correct it.

General education, not clinical advice. Check your local policy.