ROLE OF THE NURSE PRACTITIONER

Wilken (1995) reports that throughout the United States Nurse Practitioners have been functioning in an advanced nursing role since the 1970s working in inner city clinics, patient homes, physician offices and many other health care institutions, agencies, and facilities. Since the early 1980s, Wilken states, many states have passed laws that recognize the scope of practice of these health care providers.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the basic role (general tasks, duties, responsibilities, educational requirements, etc.) of the nurse practitioner through an extensive review of the literature. The paper closes with a discussion of the implications of the examined literature for the future of the nursing profession.

In their discussion of the contemporary health care system, Lancaster and Lancaster (1992) point out that the federal government has sought to improve access to health care by supporting the education and employment of non-physician health care providers, one of which is the nurse practitioner or NP. According to the authors, the nurse practitioner, in addition to performing his or her standard nursing duties, performs functions that were previously accorded solely to physicians. NPs, however, are not substitutes for physicians; rather, they function as part of a collaborative health care team to fulfill several job functions.

Basic Role and Job Functions of the Nurse Pr

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Category: Medical - R