A Career as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner

As I begin my fifth year of working as a nurse practitioner in a leading children’s hospital, I am certain the pediatric acute care setting is where I will continue my career of service to children and their families. Although I hold a masters degree in nursing and have been a primary care certified pediatric nurse practitioner for many years, I wish to expand my knowledge of pediatric nursing to encompass the unique and challenging aspects of pediatric acute care.

A nationwide shortage of physicians in the mid-1960s gave way to the development of the nation’s first master’s degree curriculum in Nurse Practitioner at the University of Colorado’s School of Nursing in 1965 (Egenes & Burgess, 2001). The nurse practitioner movement was greatly influenced by the social movements of the 1960s and 70s, including the women’s and civil rights movements. By the 1970s, nurse practitioner preparation increased in graduate programs nationwide and the provision of primary care by nurse practitioners became widely accepted. Women of various racial and ethnic groups were finally allowed entry into nursing education programs after the Nurse Training Acts of 1975 and 1980. The physician shortages of the 1970s became a surplus in the 1980s, and Nurse Practitioners and APNs felt the need to increase scientific rigor to establish their continued value as PCPs (Frellick, 2011). In 1993, The American College of Nurse Practitioners was formed to further lobby and advocate for the needs of Nurse Practitioners (Egenes & Burgess, 2001).

Children get injured or sick every day, and it doesn’t matter whether the child goes to a doctor or a pediatrician they are still tended to by a pediatric nurse. A pediatric nurse has to have many qualities. They also have to take many different classes. A pediatric nurse’s pay can vary from location to location depending on where they are working. Pediatric nurses must endure many different things to make it into this particular work field, and have many different qualities.

I want to work in the pediatric field. I want to work with children. That has always been my dream since I was a child. I know a lot about taking care of kids already

Loretta Ford, is commonly known as the pioneer of the nurse practitioner role. The NP role was shaped by Ford, in collaboration with pediatrician Henry K. Silver in 1965, in response to the need for providers for well-child care, in community based settings (Zaccagnini & Waud White, 2017). Though many texts, Zaccagnini included, cite a physician shortage as the impetus for the creation of the role, Ford herself disputes the emphasis on this shortage, as one of several “myths” many of which continue to influence the NP movement (Towers, 2011). This creates a view of NPs as “physician extenders” or substitutes for physicians, and diminishes the role of the NP (Sullivan-Marx et al., 2007). The creation of the NP was in conjunction with nursing leadership, who were focused on creating graduate nurses for clinical specialization (Towers, 2011). The lack of providers simply created an opportunistic environment for nurses to reclaim the role that public health nurses had historically held, focusing on wellness, health promotion and disease prevention (Zaccagnini & Waud White, 2017). The first NPs were certified in the area of pediatrics, but soon began to develop focus on other populations, such as whole families, gerontology, women’s health, or psychiatry.

Every individual in the world deserves to enjoy health and wellness. Maintaining or achieving proper health needs enables individuals to be productive at work and leisure. Traditionally, many people have had barriers obtaining adequate healthcare due to economic constraints or personal inconveniences. Despite impressive technological advances in medicine, the challenge of delivering quality healthcare to the Americans continues to be debated amongst the nation’s political and healthcare leaders. The aging baby-boomers and the increased number of uninsured people add to the equation of population growth which results in limited access to primary healthcare for the entire public. On the

Many years ago I chose my studies to begin a career in the medical field. My original goal was to become a Pediatrician. However, at the end of my bachelor’s degree and after many hours spent volunteering at Miami Children’s Hospital, I decided that I wanted a career that would give me more patient provider interaction. I spoke with several doctors, nurses, and other health care providers and decided the best career for me was a Nurse Practitioner. I still have not decided on a specialty but I feel that path will come naturally with

Healthcare in the United States in the 1950’s and 1960’s experienced an upheaval with the expanded availability of the Medicare and Medicaid programs and the increased specialization of medicine. The shortage in providing health care coverage to low-income women, children, the elderly, and people with disabilities gave clinically experienced nurses the opportunity to fill the primary care void. This was accomplished with the introduction of the first Nurse Practitioner program. The NP program was co-created in 1965 by a nurse educator, Loretta Ford, EdD, RN, PNP, and a physician, Henry Silver, MD, at the University of Colorado as a non-degree

My name is Kristen Simoneaux, and I am a Sophomore here at Lamar University. I am from Nederland Texas, and I graduated from Nederland High School in 2013. I have lived in Nederland all of my life, and I continue to live here. I am going to Lamar University because it is close to home, and it has an excellent nursing program. My major is nursing, and I plan to graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree in May 2017. I am applying to the nursing program for the Fall of 2015, and I will spend two years in the nursing program. After I graduate, I plan to get my Masters degree and then hopefully my PhD to become a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner. I have been dancing for sixteen years at Keely Jardell’s School of Dance in Nederland Texas, and I am currently an assistant teacher there. I have been assisting for two years. I am also on the Lamar University Dance Team and have been on it for two years. This year, I am one of five officers. The Dance Team performs at all of the Lamar home football and basketball games and puts on an annual Spring show. We also do numerous community service hours.

A pediatric nurse would be the career for me because I work well with children and I find that helping children makes me happy. Being a pediatric nurse has many duties and personal characteristics needed; such as working with children and getting along with them easily. Being a pediatric nurse also requires many years of studying and also many costs, but in the end the wages and benefits make up for it. The work setting and employment outlook are looking good for the upcoming years. Having a career as a pediatric nurse requires a lot of responsibilities and duties but I feel that because I am hard working and easily get along with children this would be the right career for me.

Between the mid1960’s to 80’s, physicians collaborated with nurses who had clinical experience and those who were interested in obtaining experience. In 1965, low-income women, children, the elderly, and people with disabilities were covered under the Medicare and Medicaid programs. This sudden availability of coverage increased the demand for expanded primary care services, but physicians were unable to meet this demand, so nurses who were qualified to expand their roles and meet the demand of the growing need of primary care services, where available to take on the responsibility of providing care. (O’Bryan, 2003) Today, the Advanced nursing roles has expanded.

My career goal is to become an Occupational Therapist and specialize in pediatrics. I want to specialize in pediatrics because I have always loved to be around children and be able to help them in whatever they need. Also, pediatrics is important to me because kids are our future and if I can help kids for their future I will be glad to do so. Helping kids become more independent on their activities of daily living makes me happy because I am helping them to become more independent and make them feel like they can accomplish anything. In order to be able to do this I have to get a Master Degree and I plan on getting this degree from Loma Linda University. In five years I see myself working in the Occupational Therapy setting and working with kids. I see myself, making others

The career path I have chosen to take is in the medical field. My dream from a young age was always to be a nurse. A nurse is a healthcare professional who is focused on caring for people, and making sure that they manage, maintain, and recover patients to the finest state of health (What is Nursing, par.1). Nursing makes up a vast majority of the healthcare industry. There is a huge range of nursing specialties. Nurses work in General and surgical Hospitals, doctor’s offices, nursing care facilities, outpatient facilities, and home health services (Why Be a Nurse, par. 2). Nursing is an extremely flexible career, with one hundred and four specialties and a lot of advanced nursing degrees, so there is something for everyone in this field (Why Be a Nurse, par. 4). Nurses do much more than just help people heal physically. Nurses are there to make sure patients are taken care of physically and emotionally. There are different levels of

Pediatric nursing is an important profession to us today. They devote their knowledge and skills to caring for children from infancy through the late teen years. Pediatric nursing does not just give you the opportunity to work with children, but with their families as well. I was inspired to become a pediatric nurse when I was younger. I remember when my little sister had to go to Kids First Pediatric to get a flu shot, my sister was so terrified of the needle she began to cry and try to move away from the nurse. In order for the nurse to calm my sister down she started making my sister laugh by playing peek-a-boo with her so that my sister could get her mind off of the needle. Once my sister was no longer thinking about the needle the nurse told my sister to count with her and on the count of three the nurse gave my sister the flu shot without my sister even noticing it. I found it so unique how a nurse could be playful with kids when they’re scared. I like working with kids so I know that this particular field is perfect for me.

I have had a passion for becoming a healthcare provider for children for quite a while (for a long time). Children are one of the most important individuals of society because they are the future and will one day be in charge of the world. Their health at a young age is indicative to how their health will be as adults. Childhood has a great effect on how a person turns out to be so I hope to help children I hope to use prevention and education to preserve and restore the health of my patients. My career goals are to prevent children from having to spend time in hospitals or in pain and to help them live out their life and dreams to the fullest extent. Children play a very large role in their families, and when a child becomes sick, the whole family becomes distressed. Pediatricians not only heal children, but they help and prevent a family from suffering. I love medicine and children, and I hope to combine these two passions by becoming a pediatrician.