When I tell people I'm in nurse practitioner (NP) school I receive all kinds of responses. "So you're going to be a physician's assistant?" "Don't have enough letters behind your name already?" And my all time favorite: "Will you go back and get your RN (registered nurse)?" Drives. Me. Crazy. Even though the majority of these responses come from my grandmother's generation, there is without a doubt a lot of confusion and misinformation floating out there regarding advance practice nurses (APRNs). Especially within the medical community. So in the famous words of DJ Kool, let me clear my throat.
In a nut shell an NP is an APRN qualified to provide a range of both primary and acute health care services such as diagnosing, treating medical conditions, and writing prescriptions. APRN scope of practice varies by state, which I think is why there is so much confusion, but I digress. Educational requirements include a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), post-master's, or a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP). A PhD is another option, but these nurses focus more on research than clinical practice. There are several specialties available to NPs: acute care, adult, family, gerontology, neonatal, pediatric, psychiatric/mental health, and women's health.
There are four types of APRNs: NPs, clinical nurse specialists (CNS), nurse-midwives, and nurse anesthetists (CRNA). Think of APRN as an umbrella term. Clear as mud? Check out http://www.graduatenursingedu.org/aprn-definition. The site covers everything APRN.
I hope this clarifies things a little bit. Thank you for stopping by! Feel free to comment. And be sure to follow me on Twitter and Instagram @RN2Practitioner #nursemeetspractitioner!
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