Nature of Advanced Practice and Specialist Practice

Nature of advanced and specialist practice

Introduction

In our day today life we see advancements in various fields. Likewise nursing is a holistic profession where many changes have occurred. Throughout the nursing history it is the professionalization that has been a driving force for change (Barker. M, 2009 p20). From the period of Nightingale to the recent nursing there is much advancement in nursing practices. In the UK barriers for advanced nursing practice has been decreased for past 20 years as the legislative reforms have swept the nation (Pearson, 2004). Advanced practice and specialist practice role have emerged in many parts of the world and the educational standards also set for these practices. The advanced practice role seems to capture the interest of the nurses because it allows them to act autonomously and it has expanded a lot beyond their expectations for example: prescription writing etc. (Vampola and Levine, 2005). This essay will focus on the nature of advanced and specialist practice. Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) and Nurse Practitioner (NP) role was confused previously, now these roles are identified to be distinct and they were set some separate educational programmes for these roles (Hamric and Hanson, 2009).

Advanced nursing practice (ANP)/ Nurse Practitioner (NP) role is defined as a registered nurse who has expert knowledge, experience, masters degree, capable of making clinical decisions independently, act competently, the characteristic are shaped by their surroundings in which s/he is credentialed to practice (ICN, 2002). Hamric (2005), conceptualises Advanced practice nursing as the application of expanded range of practical, theoretical and research to phenomena experienced by patients with...

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...dvanced Practice Nursing: An Integrative Approach, fourth edition, Elseviser Saunders, USA

• McGee P. and Castledine G.(2003) Advanced Nursing Practice, second edition, Blackwell Publishing, Oxford

• National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists (2004) Statement on clinical nurse specialist practice and education. Harrisburg, PA: Author.

• Nursing and Midwifery council (2005) NMC consultation on a proposed framework for the standard for post- registration nursing. London

• Pearson, L. (2004) Sixteenth annual legislative update: how each state stands on legislative issues affecting advanced nursing practice? The Nurse Practitioner, 29 (1), 26-51.

• Schober M. and Affara F.(2006) International Council of Nurses: Advanced Nursing Practice, Blackwell Publishing Ltd, Oxford.

• Vampola, D and Levine, J. (2005) Clinical Excellence for Nurse Practitioner, 9(1),