Question about NP

Nurses General Nursing

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I have a question for those of you who are NPs/soon to be NP... I am currently looking into schools who will accept my NY license and have only found a few. All of them are pretty expensive (~$75,000!!) Most of the experienced Nurses on my unit (ER) are telling me not to do NP at all. That being aj NP isnt worth it. Also 1 NP is advising me not to do it at all and another one telling me to go for it. I'm just curious, why are some Nurses against the NP role? Whats wrong with being a mid-level Provider? I am asking on this to gain insight on what I am missing. Is that too much money to spend on a program, considering many states dont approve NY Nurses? Thank you.

What do you mean by schools "won't accept" your NY license? Do you have an active, unrestricted RN license? Is this a matter of the schools "accepting" your license, or is it a matter of online schools that may not be approved by the state of NY to enroll NY residents? That is "a thing" now.

Depending on your geographical location, nps don't always make more than nurses at the bedside (when you break it down to hourly wages). If you value flexibility in scheduling, too, bedside is the place to be. Finally, imho, the role of the np isn't clearly defined... you will hear a bunch of vague answers to the question "how are nps different than physicians? "

But there are good things too...

Yes thats what I meant.

Yes, I have heard of bedside nurses making the same, if not more, than NPs here in NY by doing OT or per diem elsewhere, but I wasnt sure if it was true. I have also noticed at my hospital attendings seem to work better with PAs than NPs and not sure why that is..

Specializes in MCH,NICU,NNsy,Educ,Village Nursing.

Why do YOU want to be an NP? That's the place to start.

Have you check UMass Boston's online program? Or, Texas Woman's University's?

Why did your coworkers and a NP tell you *not* to be a NP? What reasons did they state?

Reasons - not worth the extra time, responsibility, hassle, money, for a "small" increase in pay. Some have said you lose flexibility in scheduling. But I wonder if most of them telling me this are the ones who regret not going back to school when they could have, but maybe I am wrong.

However I feel that their job is way less physical although they do have to think more. In my ER they dont have to wait for the next NP to give report, 5 mins to 7-- they are gone!! I like that they get to make the big decisions. Sometimes when we get patients with minor issues, lets say, cold symptoms, thwy dont even see the pt., they just sit at their computers and put in orders. Although I enjoy bedside, at times I am tired of taking and carrying out orders. I wish sometimes that I was on the other end of it. But I'm wondering if ~$75,000 for a 4 yr DNP is worth the investment. I dont want to spend the rest of my life paying back loans. I'm still paying off my loans from my first degreeí ½í¹„

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