418 ■ III: ROLE FUNCTIONS OF DOCTORAL ADVANCED NURSING PRACTICE
The drafters of the 2004 position statement envisioned that the competencies
and scope of practice of DNP graduates would transcend the institutional walls of the
Academy (AACN, 2015b). Citing the Institute of Medicine’s (IOM) classic studies on
medication errors and patient safety, To Err Is Human (1999) and Crossing the Quality
Chasm (2001), the authors argued that a new type of APN was needed if this coun-
try were to improve quality of health care. Guided by the proposal, Health Professions
Education: A Bridge to Quality (2003), the IOM spoke of a new care delivery system that
was patient centered, evidence based, interdisciplinary, informed by informational tech-
nology, and oriented to improve quality of care.
In proposing practice doctorates in nursing, the AACN (2004) increased the edu-
cational competencies of master’s- prepared APNs, slightly lengthened advanced prac-
tice programs to establish educational parity with other health professionals, sought to
improve practice and patient care outcomes, and increased the supply of clinical faculty.
Essential V, Health Policy for Advocacy in Health Care is identified as a core concept in
doctoral education for advanced nursing practice (AACN, 2004). Any nurse who aspires
to a position of leadership in nursing or health care needs to be grounded in health policy.
■ HEALTH POLICY COMPETENCE AND THE ADVANCED
PRACTICE NURSING
While there are many definitions of health policy, most authors purport that policies are
decisions about the allocation of resources made by persons with authority (Longest,
2016; Mason, Gardner, Outlaw, & O’Grady, 2016). In the United States, health care
decision making resides in both the public and private sectors. This public/ private
engagement is unique in developed countries because in other developed countries
0Research-Focused DoctoralDNP50 100 150 200 250 3001031111161201241261301331342053921201531822172412642014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006FIGURE 18.1 Comparison of growth between PhD and DNP programs from 2006 to 2014.
DNP, Doctor in Nursing Practice.
Source : American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2015a).