Holistic Nursing NP vs FNP family nurse practioner

Specialties NP

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My preference is in holistic nursing but I do not think it would keep me employed as FNP would for my NP speciality. I think I can learn holistic on my own as I have been doing all along.

I feel most illness not all but most are self induced and can be prevented by a life style change. We are also over medicated as a whole society. Why are we giving a med for cholesterol that causes liver damage when we simply can give niacin which is a vitimin. We are not educating and teaching our patients how to prevent and be healthy. A cardiologist stated that sugar was a main concern with blood clots more so than fat because its sticker and things stick to it causing clots. Why are we not teaching this. I have so many examples and not enough time or web space to post here lol.

so I am posting to see if there are any holistic NP;s out there and how long and hard was it to find a job ultilizing this. what on line holistic programs are available to learn from that I can use after I get my FNP that are good ones to educate myself more in this area?

thanks for the help in advance

I've never heard of a 'holistic NP' degree. Probably depends where you want to work, if you want your own practice, if you want to work at a naturalpath clinic, what part of the country you want to live in. No practitioner HAS to prescribe something...

as far as I know, people have a really hard time tolerating therapeutic levels of niacin because of the flushing.

niacin most often causes flushing at therapeutic doses for hyperlipidemia. the vitamin dose it drastically smaller than that used for cholesterol/triglycerides. as far as overmedicating society, definitely. and in no small thanks to the incessant lobbying of the pharmaceutical industry.

and holistic NPs to my knowledge, at least schools that offer that focus, ultimately sit for the FNP certification

and when I say most often causes flushing, i have read that most patients who take niacin at therapeutic doses for HLD, get flushing side effects. it's not widely tolerated.

Specializes in FNP, ONP.

Your difficulty is going to lie in the fact that while there is truth in what you say, and it is good primary prevention, most of what you will practice as a APN is secondary and tertiary prevention, unfortunately. And when it comes to that, you have no choice but to practice EBM. Because if you treat the 60 year old obese pack-a-day smoker, post AMI pt with dyslipidemia and T2DM with niacin instead of a statin, when he drops dead of "the big one," you are going to be sued into oblivion and lose your home, your retirement, your job and your license. The time for niacin for that guy was in his 30s. Now he has to take the statin, he has no choice. It is statin, or death (unless he is unlucky enough to just have a near death CVA and survive as a veggie). The data on it is pretty cut and dried. There is no Big-Pharma conspiracy. Yes, it may elevate his liver enzymes, but without it his cardiac enzymes are going to be elevated, and a heck of a lot faster. ;)

I hear ya on the lifestyle management, I really do. I am a believer. Prevention is the name of the game, and we really should be making it a priority as a matter of public health policy and spending. However, once you are practicing you are ethically bound to practice EBM and that means offering your patients the most up-to-date science. And nuts, twigs and niacin are not the most up-to-date science for anything.

Perhaps you might prefer to be a natropath or a nutritionist if your heart really isn't in EBM. However, you may be interested in the fellowship at the University of Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine. It was originally designed for MDs/DOs but was opened to NPs as well.

http://integrativemedicine.arizona.edu/education/fellowship/

I believe it is about 30-40K, cash. It awards a certificate, not a degree, so no financial aid would be available. I had a friend who went through the program after we did our FNP. She loved it and thinks Andrew Weil hung the moon. I think he's a charlatan, but what do I know, lol. Good luck.

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