Editor's note: This letter to the editor is in response to the article, "The Miseducation of America's Nurse Practitioners," published by Bloomberg. It has been lightly edited.
I am alarmed by the fearmongering in the July 24 article, "The Miseducation of America's Nurse Practitioners." It is important to expose weaknesses and flaws in our health systems and workforce.
This article sheds light on a concerning trend in for-profit nursing programs but it is not representative of the entire nursing education pipeline. It risks tarnishing the evidence-based value of advanced practice nurses and making people afraid to get care from well-qualified nurse practitioners. This is particularly dangerous at a time when our health systems are focused on cutting costs and increasing profit at the expense of the workforce and patients.
When exposing flaws in the education and training of our workforce, it is also important to examine the complex factors that for-profit educational institutions are exploiting. These institutions are taking advantage of a health care workforce shortage while more health systems and hospitals are funded through private equity where the main goal is to increase profits.
The authors rightfully acknowledge that there is significant evidence demonstrating the value, quality and benefits of care provided by NPs. However, the article fails to highlight solutions and other models of excellence in nurse practitioner education. For example, the Doctor of Nursing Advance Practice programs at Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins School of Nursing effectively prepare nurse practitioners with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform their role. Nurse practitioner students complete approximately 1,000 practice hours throughout their program. Direct, patient care clinical experiences are carefully matched based on the students' program track and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Essentials that outline the curriculum content and expected competencies for nurse practitioner graduates. In addition,simulation-based educational training is an integral part of the NP curriculum. Clinical training is unpredictable, and foreseeing what patient care opportunities the learner will encounter in the clinical environment is impossible. To prepare a practice-ready workforce, the use of simulation-based education, in addition to the didactic and clinical training is a fundamental part of the NP curriculum.
It is important to note that nurse practitioners are not intended to replace physicians but to expand our healthcare workforce and optimize the ability for all clinicians to practice to the full extent of their education and training. In so doing, we can ensure that we all get the right care at the right time. Imbalanced reporting that covers one negative aspect of any healthcare workforce not only harms the health professions but all of us seeking care in an increasingly challenging healthcare environment.