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What is a Nurse Practitioner?

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Talent.com talent.com
Answered February 09 2021
Career Expert at Talent.com
Nurse Practitioners are Registered Nurses with a higher degree of education. Their advanced training can provide additional health care options for patients, such as writing prescriptions and diagnosing conditions and illnesses. They are beneficial to the health network by reducing pressure on the system, providing high-quality services to patients, and improving patients' access to healthcare professionals.  
   
Nurse Practitioners must complete a graduate degree on top of an undergraduate degree in Nursing to become qualified. They must have previous experience working as a Nurse and provide educational and hands-on work services. Nurse Practitioners work in various professional healthcare settings such as hospitals, long-term care, community care, and in some situations, clinical practices of their own.    
   
Working collaboratively as a team with doctors, social workers, nurses, and more, Nurse Practitioners add value to the health care system. The Canadian healthcare system first introduced Nurse Practitioners in the 1960s in rural and remote areas but not until the 1980s for the American healthcare system. Laws for what NPs can and cannot do are geographical, but they have become an integral part of today's healthcare system. 

Personality of a  Nurse Practitioner

  • Attentive  
As with anyone working in the medical field, Nurse Practitioners need to possess a healthy regard for the details. Every action they perform needs to careful and proper execution because it will directly affect their patients. There is no room for error and being attentive is essential for any NP.  

  • Compassionate  
NPs will often work directly with patients, so they work hard to be compassionate and approachable. NPs strive to provide their patients with the best care possible, and by showing their compassion, they can help improve a patient's well-being.   

  • Communicative   
NPs have many roles, and among these, one of the most important traits to possess is clear and effective communication while working with patients and other health care professionals. NPs may need to walk patients through procedures, provide patient counseling and more, or work with Physicians during surgery, so unbeatable communication skills are a must.
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