NURSE PRACTITIONER EDUCATION AND TITLE CLARIFICATION

In the 1960s, the role of the NP was not welcomed, many of the educational programs were continuing education programs rather than university programs.In the 1980s and 1990s, NP education moved into the university setting as master’s-level programs, although confusion arose when efforts were made to interchange the clinical nurse specialist (CNS) and NP roles. Today more than 330 graduate-level NP programs exist. Many offer a clinical doctorate—the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)—for NP education in response to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) recommendation that advanced practice nurses be educated at that level by 2015. In 2008 the Consensus Model for APRN Regulation: Licensure, Accreditation, Certification and Education was finalized through the collaborative efforts of the APRN Consensus Work Group and the National Council of State Boards of Nursing APRN Advisory Committee (2008). To clarify who is an advanced practice registered nurse, the document included the following definition: An advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) is a nurse: 1. Who has completed an accredited graduate-level education program preparing him or her for one of the four recognized APRN roles;