Jennifer Best, MN, RN, FRE

Director of Standards & Guidance, Education Program Approval & Customer Experience, Nova Scotia Board of Nursing

I have been a proud registered nurse for 28 years; I received a BScN from Saint Francis Xavier University in 1998 and a Masters in Nursing from Athabasca University in 2009. For the first 12 years of my career, I worked in acute care as a staff nurse, clinical nurse educator, and emergency department nurse manager. These positions required me to grow my skills in strategic planning, leadership, fiscal management and community and system partner engagement. In 2010, I served on the Board at the College of Registered Nurses of Nova Scotia (CRNNS). Through actively participation, I gained regulatory knowledge, leadership and experience with a Board that used a policy governance approach. This experience was my introduction into leadership in regulation and when an opportunity came to pivot my career to full time nursing regulation, I took a chance. In 2012 I began working at CRNNS as a practice consultant. In this role I was able to provide nurses across Nova Scotia with the best possible regulatory guidance and professional practice advice to support them in their practice. In 2021 I was promoted to the Director of Standards and Guidance, Education Program Approval and Customer Experience. Within this role I am privileged to provide leadership and strategic oversight to my team. I am the proud mom to 2 wonderful adult children and over the last 23 years I have supported their growth and dreams. This has led me, as it does for many parents, to serve my community in a variety of ways. I have served as president of our PTA, vice president of our lacrosse club and team manager for youth hockey. These experiences have taught me patience and empathy. In these roles I was able to use my financial literacy skills to secure thousands of dollars in grant funding to support our programs. I am actively involved in my church where I currently serve on the finance committee. I serve with our town Food Pantry which is intended to help address food insecurity in our community.

I became first became involved in NCSBN in 2013 when I was accepted into the Nursing Fellowship in Regulatory Excellence (FRE) program. Over the next four years with the support of NCSBN I attended yearly in-person meetings of the FRE program where I presented the work I had completed over the year. In 2017 I completed a 4-year research project titled “Understanding the Public’s Perception of the Mechanisms to Promote the Continuing Competence of Registered Nurses in Nova Scotia” and was granted the FRE designation. In 2015 I served as a committee member of the Regulatory Implications of Legal Cannabis Committee. The committee charge was to explore the current trends and issues related to marijuana use and its relationship to nursing regulation. I assisted in effectively meet the committee charge which included the development of a Board report “Facts, Trends and Issues Related to Marijuana Use and Its Relationship to Nursing Regulation”. Although this committee term was short, I felt my unique Canadian perspective and knowledge was helpful to complete the charge. When in 2021 when I became a Director in my current role, I started to attend more networking calls. I am currently a member of the APRN and Education Knowledge Networks. The information I have gained on these calls has assisted me in fulfilling my role at NSCN In 2022 I completed the National Council State Board of Nursing International Center for Regulatory Scholarship Certificate program and graduated with the inaugural graduating class of the ICRS program. In August 2023 to the present, I have served on the Awards Committee. The committee charge is to select the Awards Recipients. Work on the committee has involved promoting the awards program, speaking and knowledge network calls and the development of two new awards- Nova and Catalyst Awards. I have participated in the annual general meeting and the mid year meeting on both 2025 and 2026.

My professional, regulatory, community experience and advanced education have all prepared me with the appropriate competencies to be a strong fit on the NCSBN Board of Directors. Specifically, I posses the following competencies: Deep understanding of nursing regulation: I have over 16 years of experience in nursing regulation, first as a Board member and for the last 14 years as a staff member. I have been active with committees and advancing my regulatory knowledge with NCSBN over the last 12 years. I have a deep understanding of nursing regulation in both Canada and the United States. Commitment to Governance: My experience in leadership with a variety of community organizations as well as my experience on the CRNNS Board and working with the NSCN Board have assisted me in developing and respecting the role of Board member. I understand the role Board members play in governance, which includes oversight without micromanaging. I understand Boards must respect the management team while providing strategic direction and support. Critical thinking to identify and manage risks: A critical part of my current role is to identify risks to NSCN. We cannot do the work we need to do to protect the public if we expose ourselves to risks. I understand risk management frameworks, and I have the courage to ask difficult questions related to risk. Strong understanding of financial planning and budgeting. Over the last 17 years I have been responsible to both create and manage multimillion-dollar budgets. This has required me to have strong skills in forecasting, analysis of historical data and looking at future trends to inform responsible and accurate budgets. Collaboration to build consensus: My professional and personal work are all rooted in the value of collaboration. I value teamwork, listening to under diverse perspectives to gain understanding while ensuring that all voices are heard during discussions. I aim to build consensus while supporting others on my team.

NCSBN is a trusted and proven leader internationally with a track record of developing innovative solutions to protect the public through regulatory science. I respectfully believe I can contribute to the NCSBN strategic initiative statement in the following ways: Advocating for the exploration of the ethical and responsible use of artificial intelligence. I would support both the exploration of AI tools to support regulators to achieve their mission of public protection as well as the development of international nursing standards to guide AI use in the clinical setting. The world of AI is growing at a rapid pace and NCSBN as a leader can promote the responsible use of AI through the development of regulator tools and clinical standards. I have an extensive knowledge of standards development and understand what Board need for evidence to ensure standards are achievable and legislatively accountable. These tools and standards would contribute to the strategic initiative statement of protection of the public and trust in the nursing profession. Upholding global nursing regulatory leadership and collaboration. As an exam user member from Canada, I would bring that global lens to Board. I feel this is vital at this time in our world history that we have a diverse and balanced approach to regulatory leadership. We need to continue moving from localized, siloed regulatory solutions to an interconnected, international approach that addresses the complexities of a mobile and interdependent profession. We need to ensure that regulatory solutions can be scalable for all users of NCSBN services and can be adapted to international contexts. As a regulatory leader in Canada and at NSCBN I am well positioned to provide this lens to the Board work. Promoting data driven solutions. NSCBN collects a wealth of data and has skilled and dedicated employees who can preform predicative analysis using that data. As a Board member I would request that this data be used to identify early risk indicators in licensure and discipline and to improve cross jurisdictional mobility and transparency. An international approach to data analysis will assist Boards to make regulatory decision that both protect the public and create transparency and trust. I would encourage the use of this data to development of standards and guidance to address emerging risks within nursing practice. I have a proven track record of using data to inform decisions. From my Fellowship in Regulatory Excellence project which looked at the public perception of CCP programs to my most recent evaluation project on and expedited process to license and registered internationally education nurse, I have used data to innovate solutions for public protection. It is imperative that at this time in the world that NCSBN has a strong Board of Directors that is courageous and protects the public and the trust in nursing by providing innovative regulatory solutions, insights and expertise. I would be honored to use my extensive knowledge and skills to contribute to the NSCN Board as a Director at Large.