I was speaking at a home schooling conference this weekend, and struck up a conversation with a young lady who told me "I'm going to become a nurse practitioner AND a surgeon". I told her the terms are not interchangeable- and she informed me "Oh no, nurse practitioners are going to be doctors starting in 2015!!" I made a valiant attempt to explain the difference between a doctorate and a physician - but she apparently knows better then I :)
Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
Well, there are NPs who assist in surgery (and some of our PAs can harvest vein without a surgeon present). Perhaps her confusion is genuine and related to this? I shudder to think otherwise.
No - she thinks that DNP=MD - and that she will be a physician after completing NP school only. Mind you, she's in 'CNA school' right now, so it won't be anytime soon.....
Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
No - she thinks that DNP=MD - and that she will be a physician after completing NP school only. Mind you, she's in 'CNA school' right now, so it won't be anytime soon.....
meanmaryjean, DNP, RN
7,899 Posts
I was speaking at a home schooling conference this weekend, and struck up a conversation with a young lady who told me "I'm going to become a nurse practitioner AND a surgeon". I told her the terms are not interchangeable- and she informed me "Oh no, nurse practitioners are going to be doctors starting in 2015!!" I made a valiant attempt to explain the difference between a doctorate and a physician - but she apparently knows better then I :)