nurse practioner

:) Hello all!

I was originally going to post this in the student forums. I actually came across a similiar post by another user, but no one ever responded to that person's original post, so I was hoping that more people would see the thread here and would be able to give some insight.

I am currently in a BSN program and am looking into nurse practioner programs. I went to school's sites, but still have a basic unanswered question. I would like to eventually work as an NP in the hospital, inpatient. Probably in the ER if at all possible. Anyway, I was wondering if this would require an acute care nurse practioner license OR could a Master of Science in Home Health Advanced Practice/Family Nurse Practitioner (M.S.N.) also work? The latter, in particular, is one program I came across that is close to my home. There is also another "family nurse practioner" program near my home.

I guess what I am asking is, what "type" of nurse practioner degree do you need to work in an inpatient hospital setting (NOT community or physician office)? I suppose I'm a little confused on where exactly a Family Nurse practioner degree could take you, and also whether home health advanced is synonymous with family nurse practioner (as it seems to be bc the one program is titled "Home Health Advanced Practice/SLASHFamily Nurse Practitioner (M.S.N.)").

Thanks for ANY insight.

Hello, sweetie715,

I moved your thread to the Nurse Practitioner forum for a better response.

You need to conduct a search in your area of the type of nurse practitioner services needed. Some entities require the NP be Acute Care certified in order to work in the ED. Some say the FNP is all that is needed.

If you are seeking the Home Health advanced only, then I would say this would not let allow you to work in the ED. I'm certain you would be held to a position revolving around HH. HH track alone is not the same as FNP. But, if the track combines the FNP, you should be able to do anything caring for the individual from birth through death and everything inbetween.

Now, in my area the FNP is allowed to do ED. I do this frequently. I am OB/GYN NP and FNP. But, the Adult NP certification will not allow the NP to work in the ED. Normally, the entity requires the NP be astute in the care of the ped patient and the Adult track does not incorporate this learning.

Also, you need to check to see if hospitals in your area actually employ NPs and allow them to practice in the advanced practice role. Some hospitals will not allow this. The NP works as RN only without the responsibilities of an NP.

Just search your area for this information.

Good luck and please come back and post whenever you have a question about nurse practitioners. We will be glad to help you.