Nurse Practitioners
Nurse practitioners (NPs) are registered nurses who are prepared, through advanced education and clinical training, to provide a wide range of preventive and acute health care services. NPs have completed graduate-level studies, and in some cases have a master’s degree. NPs perform many tasks traditionally reserved for physicians, and they play a leading role, along with physician assistants, in making health care more available and more affordable. NPs may:
- Take health histories and provide complete physical examinations
- Diagnose and treat many problems
- Interpret laboratory results and read X-rays
- Prescribe and manage medications and other therapies
- Provide health teaching and supportive counseling with an emphasis on prevention of illness and health maintenance
- Refer patients to other health professionals as needed.
NPs have legal authority to practice nationwide, and have prescriptive privileges in 49 states. There are approximately 150,000 Nurse Practitioners in the United States.
Nurse Practitioners by state:
|
