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Advanced Practice Nurses
BACKGROUND
The increased
number of aging residents, growth of chronic illness, demand for more complex
and technologically advanced care, and the growing concerns of cost and quality
are some of the challenges faced by the US health care delivery system. Nurses
have always explored ways to assist in meeting the challenges and demands of
health care.
The evolution of nursing practice has produced an
increasing body of knowledge as well as multiple levels of nursing practice.
Advanced practice nurses have obtained advanced educational degrees, achieved
certification in their respective areas of practice, and mastered skills
necessary to meet changing health care needs. Their education and experience is
a critical factor in the high level of care they provide.
The use of Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) in rural
areas has steadily increased. This is due to high quality care delivered in a
safe cost effective manner by APN's. (Office of Technology Assistance, 1986).
APN's also do not face legislated or regulated anti-competitive barriers. In
many cases, APN's are the only primary care providers in rural settings.
As Americans search for ways to fix our ailing
health care system, it is clear that APN's must have a prominent role in
all geographical areas and practice settings.
POSITION
AASCIN believes in the utilization of
advanced practice nurses to the fullest extent of their scope of practice. In
addition we strongly support these principles:
Advanced practice nursing roles include Nurse
Practitioners, Clinical Nurse Specialists, Nurse Anesthetists, and Nurse
Midwives. AASCIN advocates for title protection for each of these practitioners
and uniform use of terminology and scope of practice definitions to improve
public understanding.
The advanced practice of nursing is based on a
graduate level of preparation with a major in nursing or related area.
Certification in the appropriate clinical area would be achieved within two
years of completion of the graduate degree.
Consumers should have access to cost effective
quality care using the most appropriate provider. Barriers to accessing all
providers should be eliminated. These barriers include, but are not limited to,
supervision of nurses by non-nurses, prescriptive authority without interference
from medical and pharmaceutical entities, anti-competitive legislation and
regulations, access to clinical privileges for all advanced practice nurses.
The nursing profession should determine the scope
of nursing practice. Revised 3/99 |
