─イリノイ大学シカゴ校におけるDNP養成の実際─Nurse practitioner transformation to the Doctorate of Nursing Practice: Crossing the boundaries and navigating the process

Nurse practitioner transformation to the Doctorate of Nursing Practice: Crossing the boundaries and navigating the process

Overview of the Doctorate of Nursing Practice

　In 2004, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) endorsed the Position Statement on the Practice Doctorate in Nursing (http://www.aacn.nche.edu/publications/position/DNPpositionstatement.pdf). This landmark decision advocated for advanced practice nurse (APN) education to transition from master's degree preparation to the clinical doctorate degree. AACN recognized the complexity of the health care system, patient acuity, and the APN competencies needed to meet these challenges required additional education in areas such as evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and systems leadership. This evolution of nursing preparation is consistent with practice doctorate education required of other health professions in the UnitedStates, such as Medicine and Pharmacy.

　As the professionalstandards are evolving for the APN, the nursing academic community is responding to the challenge of preparing APNs to meet the Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree competencies. The transformation from a master's curriculum to a DNP degree involves longitudinal investiture at the regulatory, accreditation, institutional, and faculty level. This article describes considerations for schools undertaking this journey, and provides insights of our experiences at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) College of Nursing.

Overview of the Doctorate of Nursing Practice

　In 2004, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) endorsed the Position Statement on the Practice Doctorate in Nursing (http://www.aacn.nche.edu/publications/position/DNPpositionstatement.pdf). This landmark decision advocated for advanced practice nurse (APN) education to transition from master's degree preparation to the clinical doctorate degree. AACN recognized the complexity of the health care system, patient acuity, and the APN competencies needed to meet these challenges required additional education in areas such as evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and systems leadership. This evolution of nursing preparation is consistent with practice doctorate education required of other health professions in the UnitedStates, such as Medicine and Pharmacy.

　As the professionalstandards are evolving for the APN, the nursing academic community is responding to the challenge of preparing APNs to meet the Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree competencies. The transformation from a master's curriculum to a DNP degree involves longitudinal investiture at the regulatory, accreditation, institutional, and faculty level. This article describes considerations for schools undertaking this journey, and provides insights of our experiences at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) College of Nursing.