Nurse Practitioner Journey

The decision to start any program of study takes carefully thought out process. I understand the time and dedication it takes to not only further my education, but to gain a solid foundation to provide quality patient care. As I start this journey to become a nurse practitioner, I look back to my first year as a brand new nurse in an emergency department. Aware of but naïve to the high demands of being an ER nurse, I am all the more grateful for the strong mentorship while I grew from a novice nurse to the nurse I am today. To this day, I love the work that I do and I respect the staff who make it all the more possible to make it through a long shift. During the two years, I have learned the importance of having a strong educational background along with clinical practice. I learned the importance of identifying and treating the stable and the critically ill. Consequently, I have had the privilege to serve and provide care for patients in varying age groups with differing illnesses. Through these encounters, I have learned I still have the drive and motivation to be on the path of
Coworkers who are veterans of emergency nursing have repeated the saying “they (the patients) are just sicker and sicker” (Trzeciak & Rivers, 2003). With the ageing baby boomer generation, the ER takes a big hit in treating the chronically and the critically ill (Trzeciak & Rivers, 2003). More than ever, we need master’s prepared nurses in hospital settings to work alongside doctors in different specialties to facilitate the smooth transition of ER patients, to admissions, and for discharges and follow up. Adult-gerontology ACNPs can work with a team of doctors to closely monitor patient outcomes. I believe having that teamwork approach in healthcare settings will allow for better patient outcome and autonomy of