Saluting Acute Care NPs

Abstract

Hopefully this message finds you enjoying a sunny spring and making plans for summer vacation!While most of us are well aware of our nurse practitioner (NP) roots being in primary care, in the not so distant past, the role of NP began the transition into acute care settings. To better prepare NPs for these settings, acute care nurse practitioner (ACNPs) programs, standards, and certification exams were developed. As a result, ACNPs are now commonplace in many larger medical centers and specialty clinics, and outcome studies have documented their excellent care. ACNPs are found in specialty intensive care units such as coronary care, cardiothoracic, and neurological surgical units, as well as transplant and trauma services, providing expert care as a member of a multidisciplinary team. They also serve in step-down units or other units that typically do not have “house staff” coverage. More recently, ACNPs are serving vital roles in outpatient specialty clinics for follow-up care. Today certified ACNPs number just over 4000.This issue of JNP is geared toward our acute care colleagues and includes topics on hypertensive crisis, traumatic brain injuries, and a cardiac surgery model that uses NPs and physician assistants, among other topics. I not only hope that all readers will find this edition stimulating, but that it will also encourage our acute care colleagues to submit more articles about the technical aspects of the care they deliver, as well as their outcomes. Having a better understanding of the various roles within our profession can only make us better advocates for our profession, regardless of where we serve. Hopefully this message finds you enjoying a sunny spring and making plans for summer vacation! While most of us are well aware of our nurse practitioner (NP) roots being in primary care, in the not so distant past, the role of NP began the transition into acute care settings. To better prepare NPs for these settings, acute care nurse practitioner (ACNPs) programs, standards, and certification exams were developed. As a result, ACNPs are now commonplace in many larger medical centers and specialty clinics, and outcome studies have documented their excellent care. ACNPs are found in specialty intensive care units such as coronary care, cardiothoracic, and neurological surgical units, as well as transplant and trauma services, providing expert care as a member of a multidisciplinary team. They also serve in step-down units or other units that typically do not have “house staff” coverage. More recently, ACNPs are serving vital roles in outpatient specialty clinics for follow-up care. Today certified ACNPs number just over 4000. This issue of JNP is geared toward our acute care colleagues and includes topics on hypertensive crisis, traumatic brain injuries, and a cardiac surgery model that uses NPs and physician assistants, among other topics. I not only hope that all readers will find this edition stimulating, but that it will also encourage our acute care colleagues to submit more articles about the technical aspects of the care they deliver, as well as their outcomes. Having a better understanding of the various roles within our profession can only make us better advocates for our profession, regardless of where we serve.