👤 By the CinnaRN Clinical Content Team🕐 Updated 2026-08-23🏷️ Management of Care🔖 Free to read, print, and share
Also known as: nurse practice act · what nurses can do · RN vs LPN duties · delegation limits
💡
Use this quick-reference guide to spot, treat, and prevent Scope of Practice on the NCLEX. Keep it handy during review and on exam day!
🩺
📒 The 1-minute cheat sheet
📌 Def
NPA sets legal RN limits
State board enforces license
Varies by state + role
✅ Rn Does
Assess, plan, evaluate, teach
Initial assessment = RN only
Unstable/complex pt care
📌 Avoid
Don't exceed scope → liability
Unsafe order → don't carry out
Can't delegate nursing judgment
🚩 Report
Asked beyond scope → refuse, tell MD
Question unclear orders first
📚 Scope of Practice — full study notes
The cheat sheet above is your quick recall card. These notes go deeper — what it is, what to do first, what must be reported, and what to teach.
Scope of practice defines the procedures, actions, and responsibilities a nurse is legally permitted to perform, set by the state Nurse Practice Act and the Board of Nursing. The RN is responsible for assessment, planning, evaluation, teaching, and tasks that require nursing judgment. Practicing outside one's scope is a legal and licensure violation.
🔑
Key points
Understand these first
The state Nurse Practice Act and Board of Nursing legally define each nurse's scope of practice.
The RN retains assessment, initial nursing diagnosis, care planning, evaluation, and patient teaching; these cannot be delegated.
The RN may delegate stable, predictable, routine tasks to LPNs/LVNs and unlicensed assistive personnel.
The five rights of delegation are the right task, circumstance, person, direction, and supervision.
The RN remains accountable for the outcome of any delegated task.
An unstable patient or one requiring nursing judgment should be cared for by the RN, not delegated.
✅
Nursing priorities
What to do, in order
Delegate only stable, routine tasks that match the team member's role and competence.
Match assignments to the patient's acuity, assigning unstable patients to the RN.
Provide clear directions and expected outcomes when delegating, and verify completion.
Decline tasks outside your legal scope or for which you lack competence, and seek clarification.
Retain assessment, teaching, evaluation, and judgment-based decisions for the RN.
🚩
Red flags — report now
Escalate immediately
Never delegate assessment, teaching, evaluation, or care of an unstable patient to a UAP or LPN.
Never perform a procedure outside your legal scope or competence even if directed to.
Report immediately if asked to take an assignment you are not qualified or licensed to perform.
❓ Scope of Practice: NCLEX FAQs
What are the priority nursing interventions for Scope of Practice?
Delegate only stable, routine tasks that match the team member's role and competence. Match assignments to the patient's acuity, assigning unstable patients to the RN. Provide clear directions and expected outcomes when delegating, and verify completion. Decline tasks outside your legal scope or for which you lack competence, and seek clarification.
What are the warning signs of Scope of Practice a nurse must report?
Never delegate assessment, teaching, evaluation, or care of an unstable patient to a UAP or LPN. Never perform a procedure outside your legal scope or competence even if directed to. Report immediately if asked to take an assignment you are not qualified or licensed to perform.
What do I need to know about Scope of Practice for the NCLEX?
The state Nurse Practice Act and Board of Nursing legally define each nurse's scope of practice. The RN retains assessment, initial nursing diagnosis, care planning, evaluation, and patient teaching; these cannot be delegated. The RN may delegate stable, predictable, routine tasks to LPNs/LVNs and unlicensed assistive personnel. The five rights of delegation are the right task, circumstance, person, direction, and supervision.
✨
Quick Tip
The state Nurse Practice Act and Board of Nursing legally define each nurse's scope of practice.