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You are receiving this update as a licensee of the Wisconsin Board of Nursing and/or as a subscriber to this communication.
🩺 A Message from the Chair: Upholding Standards, Embracing Progress
Dear Colleagues,
Happy Fall everyone. I am happy to share a few important updates and reflections as we continue our work to safeguard public health and support the nursing profession across our great state.
I would like to touch on 2025 Wisconsin Act 17 that was signed into law in August 2025. While it does not go into full effect until September 1st, 2026, it is an exciting development. It allows nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, certified nurse midwives, and certified registered nurse anesthetists to practice independently after completing 3,840 hours of professional nursing experience over at least 24 months. This legislation aims to improve healthcare access across Wisconsin by empowering APRNs to deliver care without physician oversight. This change has been years in the making and I would like to thank previous Board members and DSPS staff that have given a lot of time and attention to this, along with the help of the Wisconsin Nurses Association.
This summer, Board members attended the Annual National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) meeting held in Chicago. A large focus of that meeting continues to be Artificial Intelligence (AI) and what it means to nursing practice. The takeaway for me is, understanding how AI will help improve the practice of nursing and hopefully increase best possible outcomes for our patients.
A couple of examples noted:
- Automates administrative duties like documentation, scheduling, and inventory management, freeing nurses from time-consuming paperwork.
- Clinical decision support systems analyze patient data to assist nurses in making faster, evidence-based decisions.
- By minimizing repetitive tasks and cognitive overload, AI contributes to lower stress levels and better job satisfaction among nurses.
- Nurses report feeling more empowered and valued when they can focus on meaningful patient interactions rather than clerical work.
🔍 Upcoming projects and guidance documents
One of the Board’s current projects is the review of a comprehensive document addressing the growing presence of IV hydration clinics in Wisconsin. These clinics, offering services ranging from vitamin infusions to wellness therapies, raise important questions about scope of practice, delegation, and patient safety.
We are carefully evaluating the regulatory framework to ensure that licensed nurses practicing in these settings are supported by clear standards. The final document provides guidance on appropriate oversight, documentation, and clinical responsibilities for all practitioners. We encourage all licensees check out the guidance on the website and to stay engaged as we move forward to the next topic on the administration of Ketamine.
The Board will also be reviewing the entire Nurse Practice Act in the near future for needed updates. One item that is severely lacking is clear standards for documentation. As we all know, documentation is a cornerstone of nursing practice and will be addressed in this rule project.
📚 Commitment to Education and Accountability
Our Board remains committed to promoting continuing education and professional development. Whether you’re a new graduate or a seasoned practitioner, staying current with best practices is essential to delivering safe, ethical, and effective care. We urge all nurses to take advantage of available resources and training opportunities, especially as healthcare delivery continues to evolve.
🤝 Collaboration and Gratitude
As always, the Board welcomes your feedback, your questions, and your partnership. Together, we will continue to uphold the integrity of our profession and ensure the highest standards of care for the people of Wisconsin.
Warm regards,
 Rob Weinman, RN, CCHP
Chairperson, Wisconsin Board of Nursing
Rule Review
When the Board of Nursing requests information from licensees, or a response to a complaint filed against the licensee, the licensee is legally obligated to respond in a timely matter. When a licensee applies for licensure and renews their license, they are legally obligated to provide the Department with a current mailing address and email address. The licensee may receive a request for information from the Board via email, as the Board is not legally required to only request information via U.S. Mail. Many licensees use a personal email when they apply for and/or renew their license. And what we hear frequently is, “I do not check that email very often”. The Board of Nursing would suggest when you apply for or renew your license, to consider using an email that you do see frequently and therefore will not miss deadlines associated with Board of Nursing requests.
Wis. Admin. Code § N 7.03(1)(c) provides:
After a request of the board, failing to cooperate in a timely manner, with the board‘s investigation of a complaint filed against a license holder. There is a rebuttable presumption that a credential holder who takes longer than 30 days to respond to a request of the board has failed to cooperate in a timely manner.
Get Ready for Renewal
Opens on 1/10/2026 and
Closes on 2/28/2026 at 11:59PM
Make sure you are renewal ready! We encourage all licensed nurses to take a few proactive steps in advance of the renewal period to ensure a smooth renewal process. First, visit LicensE.wi.gov and log into your profile. After logging in, click on your name in the top right corner and click “My Profile” in the dropdown menu. Then verify the name, address, email address and phone number we have on file. These steps will help ensure a timely renewal process once the renewal period begins.
Please note that license renewals cannot be completed before January 10th, 2026.
Helpful Hints
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License Renewal Instructions Find step-by-step instructions for renewing your license here.
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Login Assistance If you are having trouble logging in, please submit a support ticket at this link. Be sure to include:
- Your full contact information
- A detailed description of the issue you are experiencing
- Your date of birth and the last four digits of your SSN in the description field (for identity verification).
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Link to How-to videos: DSPS LicensE User Guides and Videos
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Mobile Device Tip It is recommended for you to log into LicensE via desktop or laptop. If you must use a mobile device to access LicensE, turn your device horizontally (landscape mode) to view the full screen.
Board of Nursing Quick Links
Statute and Rules
Agenda Materials/ Meeting Dates
Nursing School Information
Board of Nursing Best Practices for Prescribing Controlled Substances Guideline
Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) Website
By Jenny Malak, CHPN, RN
A patient walks through hospital doors, anxious about the journey ahead. The first face they see is a nurse - steady, calm, and ready to help. In that moment, it isn’t just kindness they’re receiving. Behind the reassuring smile is a depth of specialized knowledge, years of training, and a commitment to guiding patients through some of life’s most difficult chapters. This is the essence of specialty nursing.
Specialty nursing is where skill and compassion meet. Whether it’s oncology, cardiology, pediatrics, or critical care, these nurses dedicate themselves to catering to the unique needs of their patients. They study, practice, and grow; earning certifications, building expertise, and honing the ability to anticipate not just what a patient requires medically, but what they need as a whole person.
Healthcare today is complex, fast-paced, and always changing. Patients need more than routine care, they need nurses who can translate complexity into clarity, fear into reassurance, and treatment into healing. Specialty nurses do exactly that. They bring advanced clinical knowledge, educate families facing uncertainty, collaborate across disciplines, and advocate fiercely when patients need a voice.
Specialization isn’t only about knowledge and skills. It’s about presence. It’s the oncology nurse sitting quietly with a patient as they receive chemotherapy. The cardiac nurse guiding someone toward a new lifestyle after surgery. The hospice nurse providing emotional support to a grieving family. The neonatal nurse whispering words of comfort to parents whose baby’s start in life is fragile. Specialty nurses don’t just deliver care. They deliver hope, dignity, and strength.
Specialty nursing is a lifelong journey. Nurses continue to learn, mentor, and adapt. They’re always pushing themselves to grow for the sake of their patients. With every certification earned, every new skill mastered, and every colleague mentored, they extend the reach of what nursing can achieve.
Looking Forward
Specialty nursing embodies the heart of the profession: adaptability, resilience, and unwavering commitment to those in need. As medicine continues to evolve, specialty nursing will remain at the forefront, shaping the future of healthcare with its knowledge and compassion. And in every patient story, every moment of relief, every spark of hope, they remind us why we became nurses in the first place. We became nurses to be part of something bigger than ourselves—a profession that evolves, adapts, and leads the way in shaping the future of healthcare.
Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services Disclaimer: Please note that this article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute or imply endorsement of the content of the article by the State of Wisconsin or the Department of Safety and Professional Services.
Submitted by Gina Dennik-Champion, MSN, RN, MSHA
The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is a rapidly evolving technology that is frequently embedded and integrated into our nursing practice. The application of AI in the delivery of nursing care creates challenges and opportunities. One area that needs further examination by nurses is understanding the convergence of AI and nursing practice from an ethical perspective. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the ethical considerations for nurses as it relates to delivery of safe and appropriate nursing care.
Nurses are using Artificial Intelligence to:
- Enhance patient care for personalizing treatment plans, more effective monitoring, and data sharing that support predicting and preventing adverse events.
- Improve efficiency resulting in more time for delivering direct patient care through automating repetitive and administrative tasks.
- Support decision-making using data-driven tools that provide insights and evidence-based recommendations.
- Facilitate remote care for patient monitoring and virtual consulting utilizing AI enhanced telehealth platforms which allow for more timely access to patient encounters.
The recent release of The Code Ethics for Nurses, (American Nurses Association, 2025)[i] includes the ethical principles to evaluate nursing’s role and responsibility when utilizing AI. Within the ANA Code of Ethics for Nurses document you will find ethically related values to guide our delivery of care and patient relationship. Below you will find the ethical principle, a definition as it applies to use of AI, and considerations for nurses.
Beneficence - acting in the best interest of your patient[i] and Nonmaleficence - to do no harm.[iii](Varkey B. (2021)
- Question? How are you using AI in ways that promote patient well-being and avoid harm.
- Nurses must be assured that the AI tools are safe, evidence-based, and appropriate before integrating them into care.
- Tip! Nurses are to be alert to biases in AI systems that could cause inequities or harm.
Patient Autonomy - the right of patients to make decisions about their medical care without experiencing undue influence from their health care providers.[iv] (Ubel, 2016)
- Nurses participate in shared decision-making with their patients that includes explaining when AI is being used, how it informs care, and the choices patients have.
- Nurses respect patients’ rights to make informed decisions about their care.
- Nurses ensure AI supports decision-making but… does not replace human judgment or override patient preferences.
- AI cannot be moral agents or bearers of duties and are unable to respect or disrespect.
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Patients should be informed and consent to sharing their information with AI assisted technology. Nurses ensure that informed consent has been obtained by the patient and acknowledged and carried through.
Justice - the ethical and legal principle that AI systems should operate in a manner that promotes fairness, equality, and the prevention of bias and discrimination. [v](AI Ethics Lab, 2025) Justice is a social ideal and a moral necessity embedded in human dignity. [vi] (Tembo AC, 2025)
- The use of big data to form algorithms that support nursing care delivery may have a negative impact on patient outcomes of care.
- Justice requires continual auditing and monitoring of AI systems to detect and mitigate biases.
- Nurses can advocate for equitable access to AI-supported care.
- Nurses can monitor for and call out disparities (e.g., if an algorithm underperforms for certain racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic groups).
- Nurses support work that reduces health inequities to avoid inappropriately applied decision-making by AI.
- AI does not recognize bias; it is a human responsibility.
Accountability - to be answerable to oneself and others for one’s choices, decisions, and actions as measured against a standard.[vii] (American Nurses Association, 2025)
- Nurses remain professionally responsible for patient care, even when AI is used.
- Nurses do not rely blindly on algorithms but use clinical judgment to validate AI recommendations.
- Transparency about AI limitations is critical. However it is next to impossible to determine the source of clinical algorithms development and sources used in the development of care as companies view this as proprietary and is therefore unable to access.
Privacy and Confidentiality - safeguarding data in healthcare includes technological advancements, legal frameworks, and organizational strategies that commit to the importance of implementing security measures, complying with regulations, and fostering a culture of privacy awareness within healthcare institutions employees.[viii] (Turkstani,HA 2025)
- Nurses protect patient data used by AI systems, ensuring compliance with HIPAA and other privacy laws.
- Nurses should understand what data is being collected, how it is stored, and who has access.
- Nurses avoid unnecessary sharing of identifiable data with AI platforms.
Fidelity and Trust (Fidelity) - faithfulness to a formal or implied agreement that includes loyalty, fairness, truthfulness, promise keeping and dedication to relationships. (Trust) - AI involves not only reliance on the system itself but also trust in the system’s developers. AI systems should be recognized as sociotechnical systems, where the people involved in designing, developing, deploying, and using the system are as important as the system for determining whether it is trustworthy[ix] (Duenser, 2023)
- Nurses are encouraged to maintain patient trust by being honest about AI use in care delivery.
- Nurses clearly communicate the role of AI regarding decision-making support and compared to autonomous decision-making.
- Ensure that our patients know that human care and compassion remain central to care delivery.
- AI chatbots cannot provide empathy, even though there may be generated sentences that seem empathetic, but it does not care about responses from the patient. The three types of empathy, cognitive, emotional (or affective) and compassionate are provided by nurses.
- Nurses are the most trusted and ethical profession according to Gallup polling reports[x]. (Gallup, 2025) AI generated Avatars (chatbots) are being referred to as “nurses” during patient encounters including pre-op and follow-up after discharge. AI use of Avatars cannot be empathetic it is the human nurse that begins to explore emotional responses and vulnerabilities during the patient encounter.[xi] (Wisconsin Nurses Association, 2024)
- The titles Registered Nurse and Licensed Practical Nurse are protected under State Statute 441.06(4). The language in the statute is focused on persons or individuals i.e. humans. Non-human forms of technology where AI chatbots are referred to as “nurse” should be prohibited in state statute. [xii] This has been accomplished in the State of Oregon.
Professional Competence - is a complex integration of knowledge including professional judgment, skills, values and attitude. It is an intelligent practical skill set that integrates or combines different factors and issues in complex ways, specific to each circumstance.[xiii] (Fukiada, 2018)
- Nurses acknowledge that they must continually educate themselves on AI tools, their applications, and their risks.
- Nurses stay updated on evolving best practices, regulatory guidance, and ethical standards in AI use.
- Nursing’s scope of practice is comprised of competency (education, training and experience), laws and regulations, and employer policies.
Conclusion
As artificial intelligence in its many forms will continue to be introduced and embedded in health care. AI will provide nurses with the opportunity for more time for patient engagement because of the efficiencies generated in care delivery. We know that patients will always need a real human presence, genuine compassionate conversations, soothing and purposeful touch, and interventions developed and delivered by a critically thinking nurse. It is now more important than ever that we as nurses demonstrate our core ethical values as AI continues to emerge. Afterall, nurses are the heartbeat of healthcare.
The Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services is the first multi-occupation licensing agency in the country to offer a downloadable digital license for its credential holders. Now, Wisconsin occupational license holders can carry their credentials wherever they go.
DSPS has posted on its website a simple guide for downloading a Digital Wallet Card.
Board of Nursing Membership
The Board of Nursing consists of 9 members. The members are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate.
Board Members:
Robert W. Weinman, Chairperson, Registered Nurse Member (Beaver Dam)
Jennifer L. Malak, Vice Chairperson, Registered Nurse Member (Oregon)
Patrick McNally, Secretary, Licensed Practical Nurse Member (Elm Grove)
John G. Anderson, Public Member (Madison)
Amanda K. Kane, Registered Nurse Member (Oshkosh)
Christian Saldivar Frias, Public Member (Milwaukee)
Vacancies - Licensed Practical Nurse Member, Registered Nurse Member
Information on how to apply for appointment to the Wisconsin Board of Nursing can be found through the Office of the Governor.
National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) Resource Links
IMPORTANT REMINDER: Pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 440.03(13)(am), and N 7.03(1)(h), Wis. Admin. Code, it is a licensee's duty to notify the Board of Nursing of a felony or misdemeanor in writing within 48 hours after the entry of the judgment of conviction.
Conviction Self-Report
Enforcement Actions of the Board of Nursing
The Board of Nursing, with help from staff at the Department of Safety and Professional Services, can take action against nurses licensed in the state to help protect the profession and the citizens of Wisconsin. You may search for any of the Board Orders listed below on the Department’s Orders and Disciplinary Actions Website.
Board Orders
May 1, 2025 - September 30, 2025
A wealth of useful information is available on the Department of Safety and Professional Services website at: https://dsps.wi.gov/
Do you have a change of name or address?
Licensees can update name or address information by creating a support ticket and selecting Account Questions from the “I need assistance with” dropdown.
Please note that confirmation of changes is not automatically provided. Legal notices will be sent to a licensee’s address of record with the Department.
Legal notices will be sent to a licensee’s address of record with the Department. Under s. 440.01(1), Wis. Stats., an applicant or credential holder has 30 days to provide notification of a change in name or address. Similarly, under s. 440.11(1m)(a), Wis. Stats. an applicant for or recipient of a credential who changes his or her electronic mail address or whose current electronic mail address becomes inactive shall notify the department of such a change within 30 days of the change.
Telephone Directory:
Call the Department of Safety and Professional Services toll-free (877) 617-1565, or (608) 266-2112 in the Madison area to connect to the service you need.
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