HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Respond to This Article Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by McLain, R. Articles by Moss, J. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by McLain, R. Articles by Moss, J.

To the Editors:

Thank you so much for addressing the American Association of Colleges of Nursing proposal to implement the doctor of nursing practice (DNP) as the preparation for advanced practice nursing. This is indeed an important issue that all nurses need to learn about and discuss with their colleagues. A preliminary draft of the DNP essentials document can be found on the Colleges Web site at http://www.aacn.nche.edu/. In the next several months, regional hearings will be held around the country to solicit input from all those who would like to attend.

We believe the DNP will help improve patient outcomes, clinical practice, and the stature of the profession. Advanced practice nurses at the DNP level will be educated to deliver excellent care and also to evaluate the outcomes of that care within the context of evidence-based practice and current healthcare systems. The lack of parity and respect that nurses receive from other healthcare workers is frequently cited as the primary reason why nurses leave the profession and why prospective nurses decide not to enter the profession. The DNP not only gives advanced practice nurses comparable credentials to other healthcare practitioners, it also emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration within the proposed curriculum.

Regardless of the titles we have accumulated behind our names thus far, our patients see us as nurses. Patients expect their nurses to be adequately prepared to care for them regardless of their role. This can be seen in the public’s widespread acceptance of the nurse practitioner role: There was some initial confusion on the part of the public at first, but they quickly became receptive and trusting of these nurses.

Many advanced practice nurses would like to further their education but wish to remain in clinical practice and not become researchers. The curriculum proposed by the Colleges for the DNP includes areas currently not addressed in a traditional advanced practice program. This additional content in the areas of evidence-based practice, outcomes evaluation, systems implementation, program evaluation, and technology will prepare our nurse leaders for the future. The complexity of health-care systems in the future will require that nurses possess a greater repertoire of skills than the current advanced practice curriculum provides.

The nursing profession has evolved tremendously during the past 150 years. Change will be required to meet the challenges of the next 150 years. In the words of Florence Nightingale (1872), a pioneer of our profession, "For us who Nurse, our Nursing is a thing, which, unless in it we are making progress every year, every month, every week, take my word for it, we are going back."

Rhonda McLain, DSN, RN and Jacqueline Moss, PhD, RN
Birmingham, Ala

This Article Full Text (PDF) Respond to This Article Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by McLain, R. Articles by Moss, J. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by McLain, R. Articles by Moss, J.