Family NP or Adult acute care NP - Page 3

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  1. Mar 17, '11 by
    Good post. The key is that you have the foundation to do acute care. All you need is a mentor or class to add to your knowledge.

    Inpatient medicine is not that hard, especially with a mentor to guide you until you become proficient.

    I agree that the state board is the limiting factor, as it stands now. That is one goal of the consensus is to have the competence at the specialty level be regulated by professional organizations and not the boards of nursing. This is how the physicians do it.

    We can always hope. Until then, come to the northwest, we would love to have you.
  2. Mar 18, '11 by
    Quote from shadowflightnurse
    Another option I have not seen anyone mention is being certified in dual specialties. For example, get your FNP then do a post-Master's program for the acute care. I am about to begin a program that is molded for an ED role. At the end of the program I will be eligible to sit for both FNP and adult acute care. It is a little longer than other programs, but to be prepared to sit for both exams...eithout having to go back to school makes it worthwhile to me.

    I'm sure you will hear otherwise, but this is purely an opinion. Get plenty of GOOD quality clinical experience before going back to school. Many schools are decreasing/dropping their requirement for experience and I (again, my opinion) think this is a mistake.

    Good luck in your efforts!!
    What school are you going to?
  3. Mar 18, '11 by
    Yeah the course title turn me off a bit on these DNP programs. I think having dual FNP/ACNP is your best best...there is schools like Duke University doing that. Or you can get FNP, then get ACNP after (1 year post-masters program). You'll be in school for 3 years with dual cert. do it before 2015 though.
  4. Mar 26, '11 by
    Wow, do any other schools offer a combined FNP/Acute Care NP program? This seems like an ideal solution for the dilemma. Thanks!
  5. Mar 26, '11 by
    ED Nurse:

    The certification boards require a minimum of 500 hours (plus the specialty classes) for each certification. So a combined FNP/ACNP program would have over 1000 practica hours and twice the number of specialty classes.

    It may make better sense to follow NurseW74's advice and do one for specialty area a MSN, and the second as a Post-Masters. Most schools that offer ACNP preparation also have FNP preparation. There are several students in our post-master's ACNP program who have had FNP certification for over a decade. Because of pending changes in the state's Nurse Practice Act, these FNP-prepared individuals need ACNP certification to continue to work in specialty clinics (oncology, urology, neurology, etc). What worked in the past (a FNP in specialty clinics) will not work in the future.
    FNPdude74 likes this.
  6. Jul 29, '12 by
    Great thread!
  7. Jul 29, '12 by
    Relax for now. Watch the Oylympics. Think sports. No nursing. hahaha
  8. Jul 31, '12 by
    UVA Grad Nursing, you said that your state is changing its Nurse Practice Act to keep primary care NP's from working in specialty areas. What state is that?

    BTW, I ended up enrolling in an Acute/Critical Care NP program, at Johns Hopkins. Halfway done!
  9. Jul 31, '12 by
    I am going to University of S. Alabama. Just finished 4th semester, about to start clinical portion.