Published Jul 2, 2008
pacooper
3 Posts
I'm currently a nursing student and I am becoming increasingly interested in the idea of becoming a nurse practitioner after a year or so after graduation. I've always heard that PAs do more hands-on procedures (surgical, suturing/stitching) while NPs do not. Is this true? My question is do NPs learn how to do suturing/stitching in school? Ex: Could they help a patient who has a fish hook in their knee? (personal experience...) or maybe a construction worker who has a carpenter staple stuck on the surface of their hand? Any feedback would be very helpful. Thanks in advance.
jer_sd
369 Posts
NPs can do many procedures, some are learned in school others after graduation. All of the examples you listed and more are done by NPs on a daily basis
traumaRUs, MSN, APRN
88 Articles; 21,268 Posts
Yes indeed - we can even intubate and run codes.
That said, much depends on the nurse practice act in your state and your individual job.
BChapp3182
200 Posts
We were taught how to suture in school, also how to remove warts.