Loretta Ford : The Pioneer Of The Nurse Practitioner Role

The Physician Assistant (PA) and Nurse Practitioner (NP) career fields were the medical fields’ response to the physician shortage that began in the 1960s, but the shortage still exists today. As the population continues to grow, the gap continues to grow as well. Medical schools were having a hard time producing as many doctors that were needed to fill in the gaps in a timely manner, leaving the medical field looking for ways they could have health care providers diagnose and treat patients, but educated in half the time of a doctor. The PA program was then born out of the military. Medical doctors watched as military doctors and medics came back, but they had no formal training except for on-the-job training. The NP program was derived from previous midwifery program. Currently, as the physician shortage is still impending more and more PAs and NPs are being hired to fill in the gaps. This is causing many questions to arise: Are they qualified?, What kind of education do they have?, and Should I feel safe?. Patients want to know that they are getting excellent care, and that their medical providers are qualified to diagnose and treat patients accurately.

The NONPF NP Core Competencies were established for the NP students to obtain a sound set of competencies that every NP student must have in order to practice independently (NONPF, 2015). They will have the skill and knowledge to practice by oneself. The competencies include the Scientific Foundation Competencies. These competencies will guide the student to conduct research and have evidence to back their findings. The NP will be able to critically analyze data and improve the practice by developing their own approach (NONPF, 2015).

Samantha stated that initially many people asked her if she chose to be a family nurse practitioner to be a “mini physician” (S. Hage De Reyes, personal communication, June 22, 2016). In her perspective, it has been an issue to show others in health care professions that nurses just want to expand their knowledge. She “fights battles every day” for her patients because of the holes in our health care system (S. Hage De Reyes, personal communication, June 22, 2016). In her experience, she has seen many individuals without insurance. She has learned that being a family nurse practitioner is being an advocate for the patient and helping them get the resources that they need. Family nurse practitioners help provide care in a more affordable way. In Samantha’s opinion, family nurse practitioners are the answer to creating access to care for the large uninsured population and those that are newly insured under the Affordable Care Act, and I could not agree

This organization was designed to secure the services of prominent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters relating to the health of the public. “The Institute acts to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education” (Institute of Medicine [IOM], 2010, p. 5) In October 2010, The IOM (Institute of Medicine) released the report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. This report examines the changing roles of nursing in healthcare, changes in nursing education and

The role of the nurse practitioner began in the 1960’s, with the development of an advanced nursing role in pediatrics in Colorado, to meet the need of treating children of low-income families. Since the inception of the advanced nursing role, there has been controversy in educational standards, educational requirements, knowledge base needed, and state imposed restrictions on practice. It is through the rapid development of ARNP programs and inconsistencies in educational standards that have created obstacles in the advancement of these roles, licensure differences, and restrictions that have minimized the role of the ARNP (Stanley, 2011).

The Nurse Practitioner Core Competencies (NP Core Competencies) forms and builds upon ongoing Master’s and DNP core competencies and these are the channels and background for all graduating NP students. The NP Core Competencies can input their full scope of practice as an independent licensed practitioner. These essential competencies of an NP is fully developed by graduation, no matter what the NPs preferred speciality is. The core competencies are an essential part to face the multispecialty challenges of the changing health care system. By adding knowledge, skill, and ability to independently handle different

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).

Since the inception of the Nurse Practitioner (NP) role in the 1960s, NPs have thrived in the delivery of primary healthcare and nurse case management. Despite patient satisfaction with NPs ' style of care, nurses have been critical of NPs, while physicians have been threatened by NP encroachment on MD practice. Balancing assessment, diagnosis, and treatment with caring defines NPs ' success as primary care providers. Understand the role and Scope of Practice of NPs is sometimes difficult for some to understand. The purpose of this paper is to define the role and history of NP, compare and contrast licensure versus certifications, understand NP Scope Of Practice and Standards of Care, discuss how the State Practice Acts regulate FNP practice, discuss credentialing and privileging, and differentiate between legislative and regulatory processes.

The NONPF has provided nine core competencies that will be demonstrated after successful completion of graduation (The National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties [NONPF], 2012). These nine competencies will provide the APRN with knowledge, skills and abilities to practice independently (NONPF, 2012).

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has recognized five key core competencies (CCs) that all healthcare professionals should be aware of during practice. The initial competency described concentrates on patient-centered care. Throughout history, the nursing community has continued to evolve, both in the practicing aspect and in level of caring for patients. During this evolution of nursing care, nurses providing hands on care to patients must refer to the Institute of Medicine, peer reviews and/or evidenced-based research to guide them properly as it applies to the core concepts of nursing. The first core competency according to the IOM is patient-centered care.

Nurse Practitioner Core Competencies are a set of competencies that guides and regulates the scope of practice for Certified Nurse Practitioners (CNP). Patients and organizations benefit highly from nurses working at the top of the education in their profession. As a license Advance Professional, education will help innovate and govern our needs related to patient care, safety, evidence-base practice, and improvement of positive patient outcomes. Nurse Practitioner Core Competencies consist of Leadership, Quality, Practice Inquiry, Technology/Information Literacy, Policy, Health Delivery System, Ethics, and Independent Practice Competencies.

The five core competencies identified by IOM and the sixth added by QSEN, safety, are believed to be necessary to improve both quality and safety of the healthcare system within which nurses work (Multimethod teaching). The six core competencies outlined are patient-centered care, teamwork and collaboration, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, informatics, and safety (Diffusing Qsen). While all competencies are significant to the healthcare system, patient centered care is vital to positive patient outcomes and focuses on the patient’s perspective within the healthcare system.

Since the start of my nursing career, I made the decision early on to get a few years of Registered Nurse (RN) experience and then continue on the further my education to become a Family Nurse Practitioner. My first job after graduating with my Bachelors of Science in Nursing (BSN), I worked in Pennsylvania as an oncology and hospice RN in a small rural hospital. After gaining one years’ experience, I decided to further my career by starting a career as a travel RN and simultaneously I enrolled at Chamberlain College of Nursing in the FNP program. After graduation, I plan on settling down in Washington and start my career as an FNP. Throughout this paper, I will effectively explore the scope of practice for APNs in Washington, complete a personal assessment that reflects my strengths and weaknesses, explore local and professional organizations that can be accessed to gain information on employment opportunities, determine

The role that nurse practitioner (NP) plays within the increasing complex health care system is a constant changing role with the Consensus Model and the introduction of the Affordable Care Act in 2010. The scope of the nurse practitioner (NP) includes the care of the young, the old, the sick and the well. The educational needs of a nurse practitioner vary greatly from that of a Registered Nurse (RN), in the amount of education as well as the focus of the education. NPs provide coordinated primary care with the use of comprehensive health histories and physical examinations, diagnosing and treating acute and chronic illnesses, the management of medications and therapies, ordering and interpreting tests results, and educating and

During her time as a visiting nurse, Wald became more aware of community needs for health care. It began as seeing a need for nurses in public schools, and turned into the first public health nursing system with assistance from the New York Board of Health (National Women’s Hall of Fame, 2011, para. 2). Wald then helped start the National Organization of Public Health, and was the first president (National Women’s Hall of Fame, 2011, para. 2). As a pioneer in public health nursing, Wald was able to “create models of public health and social service programs” (Henry Street Settlement, para. 2). She made great contributions to the nursing profession.