39th Annual Meeting

April 10 - 14, 2013

The United States is faced with a healthcare crisis that often results from factors such as high healthcare costs, poor access, limited providers in remote regions, poor interprofessional collaboration, and ineffective models of care. The 2011 IOM report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Practice, stresses the importance of addressing these barriers to care by optimizing the care provided by the nursing workforce.  The Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)/Nurse Practitioner program presented here has taken on this charge. The program is based on the belief that nurse practitioners are in a prime position to develop new and innovative models of care that can address the needs of vulnerable and underserved populations.  In order to do so, the students are prepared with the knowledge and skills needed to work interprofessionally, utilize healthcare technology in order to expand healthcare, serve as effective leaders in overcoming barriers to NP practice, and develop and manage nurse own/run programs and practices.  The attendees of this symposium will develop an understanding of how to provide curricular content that will prepare DNP/NPs with these competencies.  An overview of the current status of healthcare and four curricular content areas will be presented.  The first presentation will describe a health promotion curriculum that prepares NPs, dental hygienists, physical therapists, and clinical counselors to function interprofessionally.  The second presentation will outline curricular content that prepares students to utilize technology to break down the barriers of location in providing healthcare. The third presentation will focus on a curriculum to help NPs overcome barriers in developing nurse led programs/practices.  The final presentation demonstrates a program that prepares NPs to develop and implement nurse owned/run programs and practices.  The presentations will include examples of didactic content, experiential activities, assignments, projects, and practice innovations.  New practice models developed by the DNP/NP students will be presented.