Nurse practitioners are advanced practice registered nurses (APRN) who are educated and prepared at the master’s level. “Nurse Practitioner” is one of four roles that a Registered Nurse can obtain at the advanced level (NP, Midwife, Clinical Nurse Specialist and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist).
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Top of the Day
The beginning of a typical shift as a NP, starts with getting organized and mapping out the day. Reviewing patient schedules, pulling charts and having a coffee are all necessary for a productive day. Now off to see the patients!
Family Nurse Practitioners, function much like your primary care physician. The types of patients/ conditions that are seen and treated can vary greatly from day to day. However, certain medical issues can become redundant depending on the time of year. For example allergy or flu season.
Nurse Practitioners can diagnose, prescribe, order and interpret labs and imaging. They can also work independently (scope depends on state of practice) or alongside a physician and other disciplines in health care.
Noon
It’s midday and while lunch may sound good right about now, it may be an afterthought, happen on the go or not at all.
Primary Care Physicans often hire NPs to help them maximize their practice by seeing some of their patient load. According to the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, “The Average Nurse Practitioner sees 3 or more patients an hour.”
This may sound frightening to some; however, once you begin practicing as a NP, all the necessary skills you learned in school will show up like clockwork and pretty soon the hustle and bustle of the busy schedule will become a breeze.
If you had something different in mind; no worries. Nurse Practitioners can also work in various settings and environments such as research, clinics, hospitals, out-patient and can even practice independently.
Bottom of the Day
Finally, the end of the shift is nearing and that much needed second wind is in full effect.
Reminicint to that of a nurse, the latter part of the day is the most ideal time to catch up on any loose strings such as paperwork, charting, prescriptions etc.
Regardless of if everything went as planned or you found yourself in the weeds, the ultimate goal is to provide quality care and NPs have an obligation to their patients to do so by educating them about their issues so they are informed.
When you stand to make an impact as big as the role of that as a NP, a day in the life could not be more rewarding as there is an abundance of opportunity to positively impact the lives of so many.
About the author:
Julia Eze is a certified Nurse Practitioner and Registered Nurse who earned her Bachelor of Applied Science in Nursing from Georgia State University. Since then, she has honed her clinical skills as a Registered Nurse at Emory University Hospital in the field of Hematology/ Leukemia. Nurse Julia is also the founder and organizer of The Nurse Link Expos, a series of one-day interactive, peer led, network gatherings purposed to unite current, future, and aspiring nurses under one roof for empowerment, innovation, and advancement. Follow Julia on Instagram!
