Teleology or Purpose
This concept refers to the system’s explicit purpose or goal. The literature focusing on teleology is clustered into two areas: protecting the public and promoting the profession.
Protecting the Public
Public trust in the ability of regulatory bodies to protect recipients of care has been damaged as a result of high-profile failures. Accordingly, these bodies need to take concerted action to regain or maintain public confidence (Allsop, 2006).
Promoting the Profession
Casey (2008) has suggested that the failure of regulatory bodies to deal effectively with high-profile cases can be considered evidence that the bodies are focused on promoting the interests of the profession. Further, in countries where there is a need to recruit foreign-educated nurses, lengthy delays and the high costs of applicants’ procedures for obtaining the ability to practice in the country are viewed by some governments as evidence of the regulator being overcautious regarding public safety and simultaneously being protectionist towards home- educated nurses (ARNNL, 2010).