Psych NP or Psych CNS???? Confused!

[beat2beat]

hello fellow nurses,

i just received my bsn in march 2009 and began working in addictions treatment and recovery. prior to earning my nursing degree i worked in the psychiatric field and earned a human services degree. i enjoy working with both populations, psych and addictions. i am ready and eager to jump back into school to further my education because i want to work with patients 1:1 and with groups. i miss the therapeutic communcation that was encouraged when i was utilizing my human services degree. i cannot decide whether to go with the psychiatric np degree or the psychiatric clinical nurse specialist and really am confused as to what the main difference in scope is. is it just that nps hold prescriptive authority and the cns does not? does anyone know what the demand is for psych nurses (both types), what can i actually do with these degrees? any advice please. or if you are a np or cns and would just like to share your experience with your profession please feel free, i am eager to listen.

thanks.

[elkpark]

What used to be a very clear, bright line between NPs and CNSs is becoming more and more blurred and indistinct as time goes on. If you've looked at any grad programs, you've probably seen that many schools now offer a psych "NP/CNS" combined program which prepares you to sit either certification exam. The matter of Rx authority is a mostly a matter, nowadays, of geography -- some states offer Rx authority to CNSs, and some don't.

There is a lot of discussion of your questions elsewhere in this forum and in the Advanced Practice forum -- have you had a good look around them?

Best wishes.

[beat2beat]

I will explore the site further. I was looking for a combined program as you mentioned, but have been unable to find one. I am mostly curious as to what to type of different settings I can work in with these credentials.