A nurse practitioner (NP) is a registered nurse (RN) who has advanced graduate-level education and clinical experience, according to the American College of Nurse Practitioners. These health care professionals are capable of delivering a wide variety of health care services. In order to practice as a nurse practitioner a candidate must hold a current license as a registered nurse, have a graduate degree in a nurse practitioner field and be board certified in a nurse practitioner specialty.

masters in nursing practitioner programs

Nurse practitioners are advanced practiced registered nurses with master’s degrees in nursing. They usually specialize in a particular area of healthcare such as women’s health, family health or nurse-midwifery. Women’s health nurse practitioners treat women for a variety of health conditions. Some provide primary healthcare services while others provide gynecological or midwifery care. They work in a variety of settings.

masters in nursing practitioner programs

According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, by 2018 the nursing workforce will increase by 22 percent. They also state that current enrollment in nursing schools is not adequate to meet the increasing needs of the workforce. Nurses will be needed not only in hospitals, but in school clinics, doctors offices and even retail health clinics. There are several avenues that lead to a nursing license.

masters in nursing practitioner programs

Health informatics brings together computer science, information science and health care to acquire, store and retrieve data with the goal of making health care more efficient. A master's degree is the standard entry-level degree for the field. Schools with strong medical and nursing programs typically offer advanced degrees in health informatics.

masters in nursing practitioner programs

There are dozens of learning institutions throughout California that offer undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the nursing field. The programs are approved and overseen by state Board of Registered Nursing, which ensures that the programs comply with regulatory requirements. The BRN does not, however, oversee advance-practice nursing-degree programs.

masters in nursing practitioner programs