Dear Fellow NP,

Are you aware of the Ministry of Transportation’s proposal to make amendments to the current Highway and Traffic Act (HTA)?  The proposed changes, if instituted, will impact your scope of practice as an NP.  We would like to get your feedback on the proposed changes.  Kindly respond in the comments section by Friday, September 29, 2017 to ensure that your feedback is taken into consideration.

Background

Regulation changes are being proposed in three areas:

1.  NP Reporting

Proposals to amend the HTA will require NPs to report medical conditions and functional/visual impairments that make it unsafe for individuals to drive.Presently, only physicians and optometrists are required to make these reports.

2.  Medical Conditions    

Under the current medical reporting requirement, specific medical conditions are not listed.Amendments to the HTA are intended to provide clear direction to health care providers regarding the specific types of conditions that must be reported to MTO while also acknowledging the expanded scope of practice for NPs.

           The following medical conditions and functional/visual impairments are being   

           considered for mandatory reporting:

• Cognitive impairments that affect attention, judgment or insight;
• Recurrent impairments of consciousness or awareness, if left uncorrected or untreated;
• Motor/sensory impairments that affect coordination, muscle strength or control;
• Visual impairments that does not meet prescribed regulatory standards;
• Untreated or treatment non-compliance of substance use disorder; and
• Psychiatric illness such as acute psychosis or severe abnormalities of perception

Reporting of the above conditions and impairments are not deemed mandatory if the conditions are “distinctly temporary, non-recurrent or controllable nature” (Ontario Regulatory Registry, 2017).

3.  Possessing Suspended Driver’s License

Those who drive with suspended licenses are committing an offence if they present or possess a suspended driver’s license under the current act.As part of the amendment to HTA, the ministry is proposing to eliminate surrendering a suspended license to the ministry.

We need your feedback!

1. Should ALL NPs, regardless of practice setting (acute care, primary care, LTC, LHIN-CCAC), be required to report medical conditions and functional/visual impairments to the MTO under the proposed amendments?
2. Considering that “temporary conditions” can result in injurious fatalities,do you agree these should be exempted from being reported to MTO?
3. Are there other medical conditions or functional impairments that should be included in mandatory reporting?

4.  Do you have any other comments

Please provide your comments in the NP forum. If you have any questions, please contact myself, Raymond Macaraeg, at rmacaraeg@rnao.ca. Remember that your questions will be taken into consideration only until Friday, September 29, 2017.  Thank-you and I look forward to your feedback.

Sincerely,

Raymond Macaraeg, NP – PHC, MPH (c)

Nursing Policy Analyst

Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario
158 Pearl Street
Toronto, Ontario M5H 1L3

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