Canadian nursing regulators have reached a pivotal milestone in their efforts to establish a national database of nurses that will support public protection, the streamlining of multi-jurisdictional registration and the provision of reliable data used for health workforce planning. With the addition of two new regulators, Nursys in Canada is solidifying its role as a national platform for modernizing nursing regulation and enhancing labour mobility.
Recently, the Yukon Registered Nurses Association (YRNA) and the Nova Scotia College of Nursing (NSCN) joined Nursys in Canada. These additions bring the total number of Canadian regulators contributing data to Nursys® to four, with more having completed preparatory steps and expected to join before the end of the year.
This expansion is part of a Pan-Canadian effort to enable cross-jurisdictional collaboration and create a more mobile, transparent and efficient nursing workforce. By assigning a unique identifier to each nurse in the country, Nursys simplifies verification for regulators if they become registered in multiple jurisdictions. It also promotes stronger coordination between regulatory bodies across provinces and territories.
“Nurses are critical to our health care system” said the Honourable Marjorie Michel, Minister of Health. “With more nursing regulators now contributing to Nursys in Canada, we’re advancing critical steps so qualified nurses can more easily work where they’re needed most. Through this national database, we are improving workforce mobility within Canada’s health care system, so Canadians can get the health care they deserve, when and where they need it."
That emphasis on workforce mobility is also shared by Canada’s Chief Nursing Officer. “With over two million dollars in funding from Health Canada, the Nursys in Canada project is an important initiative to support health workforce planning in Canada,” said Dr. Leigh Chapman, Chief Nursing Officer of Canada. “The unique identifier database is designed to streamline the process for verification of nursing licensure, support nurses’ labour mobility and multi-jurisdictional licensure, and improve the integrity of nursing data. We are encouraged by the collaboration of nursing regulatory bodies across Canada in working to build a unified, Pan-Canadian system to support nurses, regulators and the public.”
Early participants, such as the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) and the British Columbia College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM), have helped lay the groundwork for this cross-country collaboration. With their support, regulators can now seamlessly verify registration statuses and share information, a capability that is increasingly vital to building a responsive and resilient health care system nationwide.
“We are deeply appreciative of the leadership provided by CNO and BCCNM in advocating for, implementing and sharing the Nursys platform in Canada,” said Jerome Marburg, CEO of YRNA. “Having a national database for all disciplines of nursing across Canada and North America significantly enhances our abilities as regulators to protect patients and the public while at the same time helping significantly improve labour mobility, reduce administrative time and burden, and enhance our ability to analyze regulatory trends and health human resource information. YRNA is proud to be the first early adopter, outside of CNO and BCCNM, to come on board.”
NSCN echoed these sentiments, underscoring the positive impact the platform is having at a provincial level. “The Nova Scotia College of Nursing was pleased to launch Nursys in Canada in June, as it is a pivotal advancement in the protection of Nova Scotians,” said Douglas Bungay, NSCN’s CEO & Registrar. “We rely on information from other nursing regulators when making registration and licensing decisions about applicants and Nursys in Canada provides us with access to real-time information for those who have practiced as a nurse in the U.S. and elsewhere in Canada.”
A shared vision
“Onboarding more Canadian regulators is a powerful step toward a truly interconnected nursing landscape,” said Silvie Crawford, CNO’s Registrar/Executive Director & CEO. “By sharing registration data nationally, we’re supporting a system where nurses can move more freely, and regulators can more cohesively protect the public and strengthen the workforce.”
Driven by Canadian Nurse Regulators Collaborative in partnership with CNO, BCCNM and the National Council of State Boards of Nursing in the U.S., the initiative reflects a shared vision: a more connected, national infrastructure for nursing regulation that respects privacy while enabling accountability.
“We found the Nursys in Canada team incredibly generous and helpful throughout the process of integration,” said Marburg. “If we, as one of the smallest regulators in Canada, can do it, our fellow nursing colleagues can too!”
Looking ahead, the goal is to onboard most Canadian nursing regulators by 2026, further propelling Canada toward a more unified and flexible health care workforce.