With approximately 65,000 Registered Practical Nurses (RPNs) practicing in Ontario, their role in delivering high-quality, patient-centred care is essential. Yet the WeRPN 2025 State of Nursing in Ontario Report found that more than 78% of nurses feel under-supported in their workplaces. Strengthening how RPNs are represented in research is a critical step toward improving role clarity, workplace supports, and patient outcomes.
Trends and Gaps in Research
RPNs are educated in scientific knowledge, skills and philosophy of nursing. They are regulated to practice nursing accordingly with established standards of practice and ethical codes. RPNs work both autonomously and collaboratively across settings to improve health outcomes through advocacy, evidence-informed decision-making, and culturally safe, therapeutic relationships.
Despite this, there remains limited role-specific evidence that clearly distinguishes the contributions of different nursing designations, creating gaps in understanding and workforce planning.
Encouragingly, research is evolving. Recent studies are expanding beyond traditional descriptions of RPNs as primarily college-educated nurses, to better capture their roles, employment contexts, and contributions across care settings. This growing body of evidence helps inform workplace safety for RPNs, clinical practice, policies and health services, and workforce planning and development. RPNs can use emerging evidence to inform their professional practice and to bring forward insights that help improve care delivery, workplace environments, and patient outcomes.
Driving Evidence
RPNs are increasingly contributing as co-investigators, collaborators, and advisors. More researchers are inviting RPNs to participate in their studies. For example, RPNs may be asked to join a focus group, respond to a survey, or an action-oriented process. Research is often viewed as slow to drive change as it takes time to produce rigorous and validated evidence. RPN involvement is helpful to make connections between research and the realities of practice while strengthening the relevance and applicability of research findings.
In their practice, RPNs can identify important clinical questions. Some of these questions can be answered using available information such as practice guidelines, published articles, reports, and resources from professional associations. When these questions remain unanswered, RPNs can identify the resources, supports, and skills needed to address the question, discover new information, or interpret existing facts. Practice-led research can improve immediate, local practice advancements within their organizations.
There are a growing number of ways for RPNs to get involved in research—whether by participating in current studies, collaborating on workplace projects and committees, applying for funding to support workplace projects, or contributing to broader research initiatives.
Strengthening RPN representation in research is about increasing visibility of the distinct nursing role, ensuring the profession is supported, understood, and positioned to succeed in a rapidly evolving healthcare system. WeRPN is committed to supporting and advocating for stronger RPN representation in research, ensuring your experiences and expertise help shape the future of healthcare.
Learn more at:
werpn.com/research
