252 ■ III: ROLE FUNCTIONS OF DOCTORAL ADVANCED NURSING PRACTICE
the changing needs of health care consumers, population health, and organizational
priorities.
Many stakeholders in the health care community (Lathrop & Hodnicki, 2014;
Nichols et al., 2014) have called for health care providers to acquire the highest level
of scientific knowledge and practice expertise to ensure optimal outcomes for patients
and population health. For that, and many other reasons, it becomes important to dis-
tinguish the knowledge and practice scope of advanced practice nurses based on their
educational preparation. There is a clear difference between master’s and doctoral
prepared advanced practice nurses. In accordance with the American Association of
Colleges of Nursing (AACN) position statement, creating a culture and workforce for
nursing research; one hallmark of distinction between master’s- and DNP- prepared
nurses is in that, master’s programs prepare nurses to evaluate research findings, and
to evaluate and implement evidence- based practice guidelines; while, practice- focused,
doctoral educational programs prepare graduates for the highest level of nursing prac-
tice. Moreover, the DNP degree is widely recognized as one of two terminal degrees of
the nursing profession, and is a preferred pathway for nurses seeking preparation at
the highest level of their practice (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2015).
DNP- prepared nurses have acquired the highest level of practice expertise integrated
with the ability to translate scientific knowledge into complex clinical interventions
tailored to meet individual, family, community, population health, and illness needs.
DNP- prepared nurses use advanced leadership knowledge and skills to appraise
the translation of research into practice and collaborate with scientists to launch and
advance new health policy opportunities that evolve from research, translation, and
evaluation processes (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2006).
Equipped with the added knowledge and skills gained from doctoral education,
DNP- prepared nurses, regardless of roles, whether practitioner, clinical executive, nurse
educator, or policy advocate, DNPs are prepared to mitigate CUVA, drive change, lever-
age innovation, and play an active role in improving quality outcomes for individual
patients, populations, organizations, and the American public as a whole.
As a DNP- prepared nurse myself, I read and interpreted the contents of
Chapter 10 of this book, titled “Role Strain in the Doctorally Prepared Practice Nurse:
The Experiences of Doctor of Nursing Practice Graduates in Their Current Professional
Positions—An Updated and Current View ” with mixed feelings. Although I could not
agree more with the information contained in the chapter’s introduction, descriptions of
the three (practitioner, clinical executive, or nurse educator) advanced practice nurse’s
experiences and roles, along with the report of the previous and updated views of
DNPs’ experiences in their professional positions, I nevertheless, feel obligated to offer
additional thoughts for consideration. I understand that the findings reflect the voice of
the participants in the study; however, I believe that DNPs are doing much more than
what was found, reported, and discussed in Chapter 10 from the research study.
It was no surprise to learn from the study findings and discussions in Chapter 10,
that gaining additional knowledge and skills from DNP- preparation enhanced infor-
mants’ confidence; an experience that I personally relate to, post the completion of
my DNP educational program. However, confidence is only one of the many essen-
tial ingredients necessary, and was acquired from my DNP educational preparation.
DNP- prepared nurses have acquired varied competencies, including but not limited to
leadership, scientific, practice, and health care policy, and are working in varied roles,
positively impacting the health, and health care of the nation.
I posit that the success of DNP- prepared nurses in all roles have hinged on their
abilities to make change happen. DNP’s leverage their knowledge, skills, and com-
petencies in setting direction, creating alignment, and gaining commitment toward