A Nurse Practitioner's View

The systematic review that my colleagues and I have been working on (for what seems like forever!) was finally published in the Joanna Briggs Library of Systematic Reviews! It is very gratifying to have an official peer-reviewed publication under my belt. The title of our Review is, "The effectiveness of group medical visits on diabetes mellitus type 2 (dm2) specific outcomes in adults: A systematic review." The work that we studied on group medical visits (GMV) is truly interesting and can serve as a viable model to aide in type 2 diabetes management. Graduation is just over a week away and we just have one more presentation standing in our way. I will be posting some of my reflections on the program and on the DNP in the weeks to come. For now, I will enjoy this moment!

It seems these days, anyone and everyone is willing to share their thoughts and opinions about the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree. These include non-nurses and nurses alike. Well, I thought I'd take a stab at it as well since I am now 2/3 through my pursuit of the DNP. If you were to strictly listen to some of those opinions, you would have a very poor view of just what exactly this academic degree is and what it can (and can't) do. Perhaps I can dispel or at least clarify some of these points, at least from my view. First, no one is "forcing" anyone to go back to school to get this degree. The 140,000+ already practicing NPs will continue to practice without the need to return for formal academic education. However, starting in 2015 , it is presumed that MS programs will transition to the DNP. Second, there is some variation in the DNP program types. This is incredibly frustrating to me since not all programs are created equal. The DNP is not synonymous with...