DNP Role Development for Doctoral Advanced Nursing Practice, Second Edition

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Foreword

I am most impressed with this second edition of DNP Role Development for Doctoral Advanced

Nursing Practice , a notable winner of the American Journal of Nursing first- place award in the

Advanced Practice Education category in its first edition. Drs. Dreher and Glasgow contin-

ue to provide insights in their work toward advancing the role of advanced practice nurses

(APNs) by presenting a rich historical perspective on the evolution of the Doctor of Nursing

Practice (DNP) degree and critical content on role development, and by promoting the pro-

gression of doctoral nursing roles within our complex health care system. When writing a

foreword, it is important to respond to the following: distinguishing the credibility of the

authors; determining the importance of the book relative to others; and describing the val-

ue of the book to the reader. Drs. Dreher and Glasgow are well- qualified authors who are

educating and mentoring DNP students working in leadership and academic roles. Their

involvement in the DNP degree and advancing nursing practice has been from the begin-

ning very prominent in the national discourse, with their first text paving the way to greater

discoveries and innovative insights. In this second edition, the many diverse contributors

provide important perspectives that are unique and worth reading, given their extensive

backgrounds in doctoral nursing education and advanced practice nursing.

As our health care systems become more complex (high- reliability organizations),

we are charged with greater accountability to provide safe, quality value- added care.

To not do so would be irresponsible. In September 2010, the American Association of

Colleges of Nursing (AACN) reported 121 DNP programs and one DrNP program. In

2015, the AACN noted 264 DNP programs and 60 or more in development. The tipping

point toward the DNP-degree model has been quick, with the National Organization of

Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF) supporting the position of the “DNP by 2015.”

Although this position has yet to be realized, the NONPF continues to advance the

notion, with other primary nursing specialty organizations (nurse anesthetists, nurse-

midwives, and clinical nurse specialists), that the profession advance the DNP discus-

sion as a replacement for the master’s degree for advanced practice registered nurses

(APRNs). We know that by the year 2025, educating nurse anesthesia students will be

done at the doctoral level. However, we still have far to go, as there have been no reg-

ulatory actions in any state that is requiring the DNP degree as a replacement for the

master’s degree for APRNs. Although we struggle for consensus— and it is a slow proc-

ess of modifying 50 individual State Nurse Practice Acts, changing regulatory require-

ments on the federal, state, accrediting organizational, and specialty practice levels— the

passion for the DNP degree continues, particularly among nurse educators and DNP

graduates. The true “proof of success” will be the DNPs’ influence in health systems as

well as the value- added, data- driven outcomes of these graduates. Those working side

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