UK nurse, any US possibilities?

[nbenmore]

Hi

I am a Critical Care Outreach Practitioner in UK. This is a NP position here in the UK but I don't think it is in the US! I qualified in July 2000 which I think means that I have the full hours in the 4 required areas (mental/obs etc). I know the nursing diploma I took in 2000 apparently changed post 2000 and I hear that some people are short on hours when trying to do to US? Hopefully I fall into the category meaning I don't need extra hours?

After the 3 year nursing diploma here in 2000 I started work in ICU ten years ago and have had 10 full years experience in this area. In that time I did my degree which is a BA with honors in nursing but with a Critical Care pathway that I followed. I gained this in 2005. I have since had promotion and now am a CC outreach practitioner which is the link between the wards and ICU. I have my Advanced Life Support amonst other things and am enrolled on my Masters to start in Sept. I am also doing a prescribing course soon.

Basically, will I be in demand in the US? is retrogression still huge and I'd be looking at 7 years? I have applied to Peyton O'Grady but not heard back yet. Any advice you can give would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!!

[babyNP., APRN]

I've done a bit of research since I'm a US nurse going to NP school and currently have a UK nursing license. One of the big differences is that you need a RN AND a NP license to work in the US, whereas the NMC does not regulate NPs, although they do need to be on the register as nurses. I've seen some masters programs for NP in the UK, but I've also seen "fellowship" type programs that seem to end in certificate. This was practice in the US not too long ago and there are many NPs that still don't have a masters degree, just a "certificate" who have been grandfathered into their state BON.

The whole NPs will need a doctorate by 2015 is only a suggestion, not a requirement. The only way this could be enforced would be that all the state BON mandate that it's a requirement and currently none of them do. They can't even agree to BSN being an entry level for RNs, so I doubt this will happen anytime soon.

It's curious that the UK does not utilize NPs as much as the US does, since it would save a lot of money and makes a lot of sense in a socialized medicine system. Do you think that the doctors have too big a monopoly over medicine in the UK? Do you have physician assistants or other mid-level provider roles?

[Silverdragon102, BSN]

NP's work both in the community as family practice NP and in the various departments in the hospitals. I know where I used to live in a huge city NP's were used a lot in the community and virtually did the same as a GP and saw the same amounts of patients as a GP. When I lived in the UK we had nothing like physician assistants although there was talk I am not sure if that actually came through.

Hospitals generally employ their own doctors from junior (just qualified) to consultant and they are responsible for the care and treatment of the client whilst under their care for a particular illness/disease or treatment. The GP is responsible for everything else and if the patient is going to outpatients at the hospital for treatment or monitoring for one thing the GP will still look after and treat them if something else is wrong. For example if under the consultant for cancer treatment and the patient is ill with something else (exacerbation of COPD) then they will go to the GP for assessment if not requiring emergency treatment

[Gem1210390]

In the uk there np in pretty much every speciality. For instance diabetic patients will have an np. Gp surgeries they will try to get you to see a np rather than a doctor. We have an NPs that are in charge of the hospital I work on over night and will answer all emergency call and refer on to doctors if required otherwise they will review and prescribe. I am in critical care and we have np that work a long side of the doctors. The doctors over here have a training program to follow so we will always have plenty of doctors available for every speciality because they need to train.

Every country is different and everyone works with the resources they have available. Nmc to regulate np in the uk because they are prescribers so I don't know where you read they didn't. You have to be a nurse before you can be an np and have many year experience within that area.

Education all over the world is different no nurse in better or worse in any country. We are trained to work in the country that we are trained.

Hole you all having a good bank holiday weekend

[babyNP., APRN]

Thanks for letting me know about the larger presence of NPs than I'd originally thought; I admit that my ignorance stems from the experiences my husband, his family, and a few other UK friends of mine have told me about. Perhaps they are not familiar with that type of role.

I've been told that the NMC does not license nurse practitioners, but does require that they register as nurses. Is there a separate register for nurse practitioners, then? I haven't been able to find any information on it and that's what was told to me at the UK overseas nursing course that I took. I was told that NPs only take a course on prescribing, but that's about it. You said that they have to be a nurse for a number of years before they can become an NP; how many years are required and how is this regulated? Does it depend on specialty? There's no requirement for NPs to have RN experience (except for NICU, you need 2 years), although I think it should be compulsory. Do NPs run clinics on their own too? The scope of practice varies among US states (some NPs can be fully independent of doctors and some others have many restrictions); does it vary among the different counties in the UK?

Thanks for the information! It's hard trying to find information on this kind of thing; not a lot of resources out there that I've been able to find.

[XB9S, BSN, MSN, EdD, RN, APN]

In the uk there np in pretty much every speciality. For instance diabetic patients will have an np. Gp surgeries they will try to get you to see a np rather than a doctor. We have an NPs that are in charge of the hospital I work on over night and will answer all emergency call and refer on to doctors if required otherwise they will review and prescribe. I am in critical care and we have np that work a long side of the doctors. The doctors over here have a training program to follow so we will always have plenty of doctors available for every speciality because they need to train.

Every country is different and everyone works with the resources they have available. Nmc to regulate np in the uk because they are prescribers so I don't know where you read they didn't. You have to be a nurse before you can be an np and have many year experience within that area.

Education all over the world is different no nurse in better or worse in any country. We are trained to work in the country that we are trained.

Hole you all having a good bank holiday weekend

With respect you really are wrong.

I am a nurse prescriber, and have been a nurse practitioner

The NMC do not regulate nurse practitioners, the also do not endorse the Advanced Nursing Practice degrees any differently to any other degree.

Also, there is no requirement for nurse practitioners to prescribe, this is an individual job description requirement.

It was a huge frustration for many advanced practitioners many years ago following an NMC consultation on advanced practice that they chose not to add a advanced practice part to the register, but they didn't therefore in the NMC's eyes you are a registered nurse, no more, no less.

The NMC do regulate nurse prescribers , but this is very different to being a Nurse Practitioner its a registered qualification, but does not have a seperate part of the register. So I am a registered nurse on part 1 of the register with an additional nurse independent / supplementary prescribed qualification.

I would suggest you look at the different parts of the nursing register to make sure your aware of your accountability and responsibility to understand where you sit as a registered nurse, and where you would sit as a nurse prescriber. More importantly what the NMC does not regulate

[Gem1210390]

I have no intention if ever becoming a nurse practitioner here in the uk. I am fully aware of my accountability as a nurse thank you very much.

I would never be an np in the nhs it is bad enough being a staff nurse and the way I seen our np treated today by doctors and consultants it confirms this is not the path for me.

I am sorry that I got it wrong with the nmc regarding qualification.

[Gem1210390]

Thanks for letting me know about the larger presence of NPs than I'd originally thought; I admit that my ignorance stems from the experiences my husband, his family, and a few other UK friends of mine have told me about. Perhaps they are not familiar with that type of role.

I've been told that the NMC does not license nurse practitioners, but does require that they register as nurses. Is there a separate register for nurse practitioners, then? I haven't been able to find any information on it and that's what was told to me at the UK overseas nursing course that I took. I was told that NPs only take a course on prescribing, but that's about it. You said that they have to be a nurse for a number of years before they can become an NP; how many years are required and how is this regulated? Does it depend on specialty? There's no requirement for NPs to have RN experience (except for NICU, you need 2 years), although I think it should be compulsory. Do NPs run clinics on their own too? The scope of practice varies among US states (some NPs can be fully independent of doctors and some others have many restrictions); does it vary among the different counties in the UK?

Thanks for the information! It's hard trying to find information on this kind of thing; not a lot of resources out there that I've been able to find.

I work in a critical care area and the practitioners need to be specialised in that area to be an np this normally means taking specific itu or neonatal qualification then they need to work at a level where they take charge of the unit for a number of years. This is the same for the last few trusts I have worked in. I am not sure about all over the uk every nhs trust is different.

You normally are funded by the trust you work in to take the nurse prac course there are not many that run in the uk at present I know Southampton and Sheffield currently run or are starting to run.

This is not a path I am going to take, I have taken a masters in a different route.

[XB9S, BSN, MSN, EdD, RN, APN]

I have no intention if ever becoming a nurse practitioner here in the uk. I am fully aware of my accountability as a nurse thank you very much.

I would never be an np in the nhs it is bad enough being a staff nurse and the way I seen our np treated today by doctors and consultants it confirms this is not the path for me.

I am sorry that I got it wrong with the nmc regarding qualification.

I apologise, I had the impression you were in an advanced practice role, you have posted quite a few inaccuracies about ANP roles in the UK

Not all NP roles are that bad, I've worked with exceptional medics for over 9 years and have learnt a great deal from them. I loved my ANP role and only moved for career progression into a leadership role. I miss being a nurse practitioner so much I work bank as a NP whenever I can.