The Oregon State Board of Nursing safeguards the public's health and wellbeing by providing guidance for, and regulation of, entry into the profession, nursing education and continuing safe practice.

The Board of Nursing, with the help of its staff, determines licensure and certification requirements; interprets the Oregon Nurse Practice Act; evaluates and approves nursing education programs and nursing assistant training programs; issues licenses and renewals; investigates complaints and takes disciplinary action against nurses and nursing assistants who violate the Oregon Nurse Practice Act; maintains the nursing assistant registry; and, administers nursing assistant competency evaluations.

To celebrate National Nurses Week, the Oregon State Board of Nursing salutes the 47, 898 Registered Nurses and 4,487 Licensed Practical Nurses licensed in Oregon who provide highly skilled, safe and quality care in a variety of settings. We applaud their continuing professional and ethical commitment to deliver essential care to Oregonians and others in a challenging and constantly evolving healthcare environment.
(Statistics as of April 30, 2012)

The Board of Nursing is seeking participants for a CNS Rulemaking Advisory Group to address standards for CNS educational programs in Oregon. Participants will be asked to attend a minimum of two-to-three meetings to suggest updates to Division 54 of the Oregon Nurse Practice Act. Primary consideration will be given to Oregon licensed CNSs. To apply, please fill out the information contained in the survey below online.

Meetings will begin Summer of 2012. The deadline for applications is May 15, 2012. Participation in Board advisory groups is subject to Oregon Public Meetings law and without monetary compensation. For further questions please contact OSBN Advanced Practice Consultant Tracy Klein at tracy.klein@state.or.us.

If you are enrolled in a non-Oregon based nurse practitioner or registered nurse anesthetist program, you must meet certain rule requirements PRIOR to participating in a clinical practicum in Oregon. It is crucial that you complete the form linked below and obtain Board approval prior to participating in clinical practicum. If you have questions, please click on this link below for Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

If you are precepting a nurse practitioner or registered nurse anesthetist student enrolled in a non-Oregon based program, you should verify that the student has met the requirements of the board PRIOR to the clinical practicum. If you have questions, please click on the information link below.

A new online auto-verification subscription service is now available. Subscribers to the low-cost service may receive daily, weekly or monthly notifications of the current license status for all nurses and nursing assistants in their employ at one time. The service automatically notifies subscribers when a change occurs to one of the employee's license status, including new disciplinary actions, and when licenses are due to renew.

Click on the link below to subscribe or call 971-673-0658 to arrange a demonstration for your facility.

As of July 2010, copies of public disciplinary documents taken during each Board Meeting are now available online. You may view a list of all actions taken during a Board Meeting by clicking the link below. Simply click on the applicable meeting date to find a link to the documents.

You may also look up a licensee with our online License Verification System and view any discipline documents for individual licensees.

The Nurse Practice Act requires all licensees and certificate-holders to keep the Board informed of where they are working. You can update your employer information at any time using our new Online Services system. Just click the link, log-in, and update your employer name or your address.

As reported in the Sentinel, the Oregon State Board of Nursing ceased issuing plastic license cards on Dec. 31, 2009. Employers should verify licenses through our online license verification system, or the national NURSYS system.

Nurses and nursing assistants may also look up their own license numbers with the online verification system. Simply enter a first and last name and click 'search.'

Due to the current recession and resulting state budget cuts, most state offices and facilities will be closed on the days listed in the link below. State workers affected by the closures will take unpaid furloughs on those days. We apologize for any inconvenience, and we look forward to restoration of a full work schedule for all state agencies when the economy improves.