The Impact of Advanced Practice Nursing in Healthcare

Introduction

Advanced Practice Nursing refers to improved and broadened healthcare interventions and services offered by nurses who, in an advanced capacity, affect clinical health outcomes and provide direct medical services to individuals, communities, and families. An Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) is a nurse who has obtained the expert knowledge base, multifaceted decision-making skills, and clinical proficiencies for expanded nursing practice through additional education. While advanced nursing knowledge and education are at the heart of APN practice, there may be some competence overlap with other healthcare professions. In community-based activities such as primary healthcare, ambulatory services, and out-of-hospital settings, the breadth and depth of autonomy associated with the APN frequently develop within a more extensive range. The Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) and Nurse Practitioner (NP) are the two most common forms of APNs worldwide. APN practice has portrayed diverse impacts in providing patient’s health care services in hospitals across the globe in different ways.

Nurse practitioners (NPs) are a well-established response to the consumer-driven movement toward well-being and preventive health care. A substantial number of statistics reveals that NPs have steadily demonstrated their ability to provide cost-effective, high-quality therapy for nearly 50 years (Schober et al., 2020). From the time they finish their academic training, NPs are cost-effective. “The American Association of Colleges of Nursing” has long argued that nurse practitioner education costs 20% to 25% less than physician education (Lopes-Júnior, 2021). In 2009, the total tuition fees for NP training were less than one year of medical school (Lopes-Júnior, 2021). Numerous studies have shown that nurse practitioners (NPs) are cost-effective in maintaining the health of older persons.

When compared to physician-only groups, the cost of a physician-NP team in a long-term treatment center is 42% lower for intermediate and skilled care residents and 26% lower for long-term care residents (Lopes-Júnior, 2021). Moreover, the physician-NP groups undergo less emergency room handovers, fewer field visits, and shorter clinic stays. Moreover, NP-management care in acute-care settings has been linked to cost reductions. According to research, when NPs and physicians control hypercholesterolemia after revascularization, the NP-manage group spends less on drugs, and it is more likely to achieve their goals and stick to the advised regimen (Schober et al., 2020). In addition to the total cost, other factors influence the cost-effectiveness of health care. These include, among other things, illness prevention, health outcomes, and promotion.