Residencies

[jer_sd]

Ok here is a question I have been wondering about. Why do NPs have so few residency options available? Physical therapists, optometrists, pharmacists, physician assistants all have optional postgraduate residencies or fellow ships available.

Why it that is a NP who wants to specialize we have to enroll in another NP program rather than have a residency or fellowship option? I have found 7 residencies for NPs after looking for close to a month. These include one orthopedic, one dermatology, and one hepatology.

What would be the interest for creating specialty residencies for NPs in fields such as nephrology, ophthalmology, radiology ect...could it even be a possibility to have anesthesia or obstetrics rather than CRNA or CNM school (it would still take the same general time but could there be a NP focus rather than other APN focus and it may not have gradschool tuition a NP may actually recieve a stipend for it)

Of course a lack of board certifications available may be a down side but this may help in obtaining credentials in a hospital or health care system. And there are increasing specialty NP exams such as orthopedics, oncology, or urology.

Personally I think this would be interesting and may play out with the DNP concept with generalist and specialist NPs....

But just wondering how other NPs feel about this idea.

[traumaRUs, MSN, APRN]

Hmm. Hope you don't care that a CNS is answering up. The concept of NP residencies is interesting. THe NCSBN (National Council of the State Boards of Nursing) is right now trying to come up with some idea of APN residencies. I agree that residencies might be very important for the direct-entry MSN student as they have limited to no RN experience. However, for most of us who went back to grad school with years of RN experience under our belt, I think a solid job-specific orientation is enough. I took the ANCC Adult Health CNS exam and I currently work as a nephrology APN in dialysis units. My experience is mostly ER and acute care so the switch to chronic care is very much a learning curve. However, my RN assessment skills really help. I am able (with my extensive RN experience) able to accurately assess patients.

The direct-entry MSN students would probably benefit from residencies. However, even in this case, I think the individual job will want specific tasks and/or training.

I like the idea...thanks for bringing it up.

[Selke]

This is an important issue.

Couldn't another option be to add clinical hours to APRN education? If the student, about to graduate, cannot find a residency program and she feels she needs more clinical, arrange more time in clinical through the school, stay a few more months, then graduate? Just wondering if this could be an option which a student could take on her/his own initiative.

I think it's been discussed elsewhere here that there should be more clinical hours and/or a residency of some sort for APRNs. Some schools, like Frontier, require far more clinical experiences to graduate in midwifery, for example, than brick and mortar based schools. I've been told by many that their graduates are much better prepared to walk into a job after graduation because of this.