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A nurse practitioner is a registered nurse. Her job profile includes dealing with all aspects of patient care including diagnosis, treatment and consultations. She/he certainly has more authority that a registered nurse. Nurse practitioners have advanced level of education and training. In certain ways, the job of a nurse practitioner is very much similar to a physician. For instance, they can perform the duties of a primary health care provider. He/she is also allowed to prescribe medications to the patients of all ages. Nursing is a very important part of healthcare field and nursing practitioners are specialty healthcare providers.
Nurse practitioners have the authorization to work in both inpatient and outpatient situations. They can perform the treatment independently. Apart from conducting physicals and different types of tests, they educate patients about preventative care and prescribed treatments. In general, nurse practitioners must have at least a master's degree. They can also seek training specialized areas of medicine as well. Nurse practitioner works closely with physicians to provide the right care, treatment and medication to the patients. They can diagnose and treat a range of conditions like illnesses, infections and diseases. Their job profile includes providing counseling services to patients. Nurse practitioners check medical histories of the patients. They can also perform minor surgical procedures.
Those interested in pursuing career of a nurse practitioner must complete a master degree in nursing. They are also required to be licensed registered nurses. The course curriculum includes subjects like medical ethics and law, advanced anatomy, diagnosis and treatment of common conditions and pharmacology. Nurse practitioners are required to clear the licensing examination conducted by authorities such as American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. Nurse practitioners have national certification in a particular specialty area. It could be gynecology, family practice, mental health, cardiology or pediatrics. They get to learn a lot while working with experienced nurse practitioners or physicians. At many places, employers require nurse practitioners to have at least two years of clinical experience working as a registered nurse.
There has always been a huge demand for qualified and experienced nurse practitioners. Add to that reasons like aging population, shortage of nursing practitioners and growing healthcare sector and you get a career that is full of promises and wonderful opportunities.
In India, to become a nursing practitioner, one must complete a master’s degree in nursing eligibility requirement for which includes, having a bachelor's degree in nursing. Several colleges and universities in India offer B.Sc Nursing degrees. Ideally, one should always go for colleges which are government approved and registered with the respective nursing council.
Some of the reputed nursing colleges in India are:-
College of Nursing, Lok Nayak J P Hospital, New delhi
Govt College of Nursing, Hyderabad
ST. John`s Nursing College, Bangalore
Regional College of Nursing, Guwahati
J K College of Nursing and Paramedicals, Coimbatore
Raj Kumari Amrit Kaur College of Nursing
Leelabai Thackersey College of Nursing, Bombay
Bharati Vidpeeth`s College of Nursing, Pune
Nitte instt of Nursing Sciences, Karnataka
AdhiparasakthI College of Nursing, Chennai
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