NR 510 Week 2 Discussion: Advanced Practice Nursing
In week one, you discussed your scope of practice in your current state as a nurse practitioner. Now,
... [Show More] explore the four APN roles in your state (CNP, CNS, CRNA & CNM).
• Discuss work environment, level of accountability, patient population, salary, and scope of practice for each of the APN roles. Provide your personal Pro and Con list for each role and provide appropriate citations.
• Describe your rationale for choosing the CNP advanced practice role versus any of the other three. What are your plans for clinical practice after graduation? Has your idea of NP practice changed after researching this for your state?
ANSWER
• Discuss work environment, level of accountability, patient population, salary, and scope of practice for each of the APN roles. Provide your personal Pro and Con list for each role and provide appropriate citations.
o CNP – Certified Nurse Practitioner – is a licensed, independent practitioners who practice in ambulatory, acute, and long-term care as primary and or specialty care providers. There are several different pathways that CNP can take including, Psych, gerontological, pediatrics, neonatal, or the woman’s health with advanced certifications in these areas. The scope of practice for CNP can vary in depth from state to state. However, in general, the scope of practice includes assessment, diagnosis, development of treatment plans, implementation and evaluation along with prescribing medications and ordering diagnostic testing (McClelland, 2014). In my state, a CNP earns anywhere from $110,985 to $129,935 yearly.
Pros: job outlook, power to make a difference in the lives of patients, 5 days a week, 8 hours a day schedule available, mentor opportunities, a lot of practice settings available, competitive income.
Cons: competition, lots of government regulations, bias against the profession, somedays on-call is required and lack of full autonomy in some states.
o CNS – Clinical nurse Specialist – is an advanced-practice nurse who provides patient care and consultation services for a variety of health care areas. These professionals typically practice medicine, conduct research and manage staff within a specific type of patient population, medical specialty or setting. CNS is also responsible for diagnosing and treating health/illness states, disease management, health promotion, and prevention of illness and risk behaviors among individuals, families, groups, and communities (McClelland, 2014). In my state, a CNS earns anywhere from $148,651 to $160,902 yearly.
Pros: More specialty areas to choose from, a lot of job opportunities.
Cons: extensive education requirements, expensive education.
o CRNA – Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist – is an advanced practice registered nurse who practices both autonomously and in collaboration with a variety of health providers on the interprofessional team to deliver high-quality, holistic, evidence-based anesthesia and pain care services (Cahill, Alexander, & Gross, 2014). CRNAs serve both healthy and severely ill patients for a wide variety of procedures, in different settings, including hospital surgical suites, obstetrical delivery rooms, critical access hospitals, acute care, pain management centers, ambulatory surgical centers, and the offices of dentists, podiatrists, ophthalmologists, and plastic surgeons (McClelland, 2014). In my state, a CRNA earns $215,530 on average, yearly.
Pros: Excellent pay, job security, professional respect, autonomy, job satisfaction.
Cons: Lengthy prerequisites, higher probability of facing a malpractice lawsuit, longer hours of work, plus call time, Boredom due to sitting through lengthy surgical procedures, professional and academic competition.
o CNM – Certified nurse Midwife – assists women in all stages of pregnancy, childbirth and post-delivery. They also work closely with obstetricians and gynecologists in diagnosing and treating women with acute and chronic illnesses. CNM also assists women in family planning services, preconception care, prenatal and postpartum care, childbirth and care of the newborn. CNMs can practice in many different locations, including home, hospital, birth center and a variety of ambulatory care settings, including private offices and community and public health clinic (McClelland, 2014). In my state, a CNM earns between $88,800 to $127,940 yearly.
Pros: noncompetitive, fast growing, a chance to provide care to women and care at the beginning of life.
Cons: long working hours, high-stress situations, unpredictable hours.
• Describe your rationale for choosing the CNP advanced practice role versus any of the other three. What are your plans for clinical practice after graduation? Has your idea of NP practice changed after researching this for your state?
I choose CNP practice because I am interested in working alongside of physicians and diagnosing patients, connecting with patients and making a difference in their lives. I enjoy working with people in general and being an NP can allow me to do that. My plans for clinical practice after graduation is to work in an emergency department. I used to work in the emergency department as an EMT. I currently do not work in the emergency department, although, I miss working in the busy ER. I believe that ER is where my heart is. I enjoy living in the moment and being in stress with the adrenaline rush. My idea of NP practice has not changed after researching for my state because I have a lot of family friends that are NPs in California. Even though, the practice might be limited. However, they all love their jobs and they enjoy being an NP. While working as an EMT in the ER, I was able to shadow an NP and became fascinated with the work they do especially in the busy ER. Which is what led me to pursue this career field.
Reference:
Cahill, M., Alexander, M., & Gross, L. (2014). Research-Article: The 2014 NCSBN Consensus Report on APRN Regulation. Journal of Nursing Regulation, 4, 5–12. https://doi-org.chamberlainuniversity.idm.oclc.org/10.1016/S2155-8256(15)30111-3
McClelland, M. (2014). A Guide to Advanced Practice Registered Nurse Roles. MEDSURG Nursing, 10–14. Retrieved from https://chamberlainuniversity.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a2h&AN=113313797&site=eds-live&scope=site [Show Less]