Advanced Practice Nurses: A Case Study

Advance Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) is a broad term that is used to define the masters prepared nurse that participates directly in patient care. This definition includes four different facets of nursing: certified nurse-midwives, nurse anesthetists, clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners (Joel, 2009). Of these four professions that are included in the APRN definition, Western Carolina University offers two: nurse anesthetist and nurse practitioner. Nurse educator and nurse leader, which are also offered at Western Carolina University, are not currently included in this definition.

Some practical obstacles that hinder the delivery of proficient and economical services include differences in language, cultural and knowledge of health issues. However, the prudent advanced practice nurse (APN) considers these obstacles to communication when providing patient-centered care. Nevertheless, when language barriers are not addressed, the provision of quality care to patient and families are undermined, which then transcends to both economic and ethical dilemmas. According to the centers for disease control and prevention (CDC, 2016), the gateway to healthcare is often hindered to a great extent by the lack of the ability to communicate medical necessities due to language barrier. In any clinical setting, efficient patient communication is essential in the delivery and accessibility of quality care and safety.

According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2015) the traditional roles of the advanced practice nurses include nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, nurse midwives and nurse anesthetists. Therefore, the impact of the research on the practice of the preparation of DNP nurse educator requires education in evidence-based practice, quality improvement, leadership, policy advocacy, informatics, and systems theory. Furthermore, transitioning to the DNP as a nurse educator does not change the current scope of practice of the Advance Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) for their current roles. The transition of the DNP better prepares APRNs by utilizing new models of the care delivery system and growing complexity of health

An Advanced Practice Registered Nurse is a nurse who has obtained at least a Master’s Degree in Nursing. Further specialization within in the APRN category includes Nurse Practitioners, as well as Certified Nurse Midwives, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists, and Clinical Nurse Specialists. APRNs have the education, training, and skills to perform many of the primary-care

Mental health is one fascinating specialty one can choose as an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN). Medication adherence and how far one can go to promote medication adherence can be quite an issue. Mental health patients often stop taking medications for a variety of reasons. Consequently to that decision is a decline in stability.

The American Nurses Association defines Advanced Practice Nursing as one who has successfully completed a fully accredited post bachelor degree studies with collective understanding of advanced practices. Such individual is identified to have specialized advancement and skills necessary to practice in a clinical setting. An advanced certified nurse practitioner may practice as a clinical specialist, nurse midwife, nurse anesthetist, or nurse practitioner (ANA 2004 cited by Jansen & Zwygart-Stauffacher, 2010)

An advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) is an umbrella term consisting of but not limited to roles such as Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP); Adult Geriatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (AGPCNP); Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM); and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA). Across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, it is an undeniable fact that APRNs care for multitudes of patients across the entire human lifespan and across many certain from the nursing homes and home care to hospitals, pain clinics, and substance abuse centers.

There have been concerns regarding the identification and credentialing of advanced practiced registered nurses (APRNs). A APRN is a registered nurse who has successfully completed an accredited graduate-level education program, in which the individual is well prepared and successfully passed the nationwide certification examination (APRN Consensus Model, 2008). However, there are still debating issues of who would fall under the APRN category. The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) has identified four APRNs who are deem fit to be called ARPNs; however, only two will be named. They would be certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) and certified nurse practitioners (CNPs). Whereas, the nurse informatics and the nurse administrations are not considered to be APRNs; although, they are still license registered nurses but they do not provide direct patient care and are not required to take the national certification examination (ARPN Consensus Model, 2008).

An advanced practice nurse is a registered nurse who has attained the expert knowledge base, complex decision making skills and clinical competencies for extended practice. They are competent in diagnosing and management of common medical conditions including chronic illnesses. They work collaboratively with physicians and other health care providers to provide complex health care services to patients. Advanced Practice Nurses (APN) use their advanced assessment and clinical skills to anticipate and manage complex situations, administer therapies to manage the actual and potential health issues. They also participate in the development of evidence based practice and integrate theoretical and practice-based knowledge to influence the development

The educational requirement for advanced nursing practice is a master’s level education in a program or track leading to APN licensure, including graduate degree-granting and post-graduate certificate programs with established educational standards and attainment of the APN core, role core and population core competencies (National Council of State Boards, 2012). APN’s acquire increased knowledge in the sciences of anatomy, physiology, microbiology, chemistry, pathophysiology, and pharmacology. The core curriculum for the advanced practice role includes priorities in

There are four types of Advanced Practice Nurse roles, the nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified registered nurse anesthetist, and certified nurse-midwife. The Family Nurse Practitioner is the advanced practice role that will be discussed. According to Hamric, Hanson, Tracy, and O 'Grady (2014) the primary care NP provides care for patients in diverse settings, including community-based settings such as private and public practices, acute, and long-term care settings across the life span (pg. 396). Family Nurse Practitioners have faced many challenges in the medical profession to be recognized as health care providers. Most of these challenges where from fellow nurses. According to Hamric, Hanson, Tracy, and O’Grady (2014) conflict and discord about the Nurse Practitioner role continued to characterize relationships between NPs and other nurses (pg. 18). Despite the resistance to NPs in nursing, physicians increasingly accepted NPs in individual health care practices (Hamric, Hanson, Tracy, and O’Grady, 2014, pg. 18). Physicians readily accepted the role of the Nurse Practitioner, working together to improve patient outcomes and safety.

Palumbo, Marth, and Rambur (2011) stipulate that over the years, advanced practice nurses have continued to avail care that is of top quality. Subsequently, they have been able to create a recognized place within the healthcare system. By 2012, it was reported that there was an approximate number of 240, 000 advanced practice nurses (Newhouse et al., 2012). The report also added to the assertion by Palumbo, Marth, and Rambur (2011) through the indication that advanced practice nurses offer their services in settings that need a heightened range of professional independence while providing healthcare. What concerns their function, LaBrocca and Angosta (2016) indicate that as a health expert, an advanced practice nurse foresees issues in healthcare

The role of the Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) is expanding internationally throughout the healthcare system. Since the initiation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in 2010, there has been an increased need for APNs due to the growing demand for primary care services and increased population that have gained healthcare coverage (Lanthrop & Hodnicki, 2014). The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of APN and develop a professional development plan for my future career.

As the young and rapidly-aging population continues to increase, the demands of primary, acute and chronic disease management will also increase. As a result, more health care professionals who provide primary care will be needed to meet these demands. Thus, the emergence of Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) evolve. APRN is a nurse who has completed a graduate degree and has acquired advanced knowledge and skills. APRNs are grounded with theory, concepts and principles that enable them to assess, diagnose, treat and manage their patients. APRNs can work in conjunction with other health care professionals or independently. APRNs improve access to health care by providing care in the rural and underserved areas. APRNs also reduce the cost to health care (Joel, 2013).

For current and future needs we need to enable all healthcare professionals especially nurses to practice to the full level of their education and training. Advanced practice nurses can fulfill the primary care needs. This will free up physicians to address more complex cases which needs their expertise. Current practice focus on specialty and acute care only and a shift in practice to deliver more primary care and community care services is essential to improve the quality of nursing care and address the growing need of care in these areas.