5: THE ROLE OF THE PRACTITIONER ■ 145publications supporting the move to the DNP. These qualities, built on solid NP educa-
tion obtained historically at the MS level, combine to give rise to the role and abilities
that AACN envisioned for the DNP-prepared NP.
The following year (2010) an online article was published in the New England
Nursing News (“The DNP: An Emerging Trend”). In this article, seven DNP graduates
and current DNP students relayed similar accomplishments to those cited in the Dreher
and Montgomery (2009) article. From the DNP-prepared chief nursing officer to the var-
ious NPs from a variety of practice settings, the featured subjects articulated significant
perceived benefits from their additional education. The DNPs who were interviewed
described increased knowledge regarding evidence-based practice, quality and out-
comes evaluation research, systems leadership, the needs of the increasingly complex
health care system, and the need to bridge the research–practice gap. Another theme
that clearly resonated from the article was that all of the graduates and students felt
that they now possessed a level of leadership ability to face the challenges of the health
care system that they did not previously possess. In a more recent publication, many of
these same perspectives were conveyed via a case study describing one DNP-prepared
NP’s practice (Paul, 2015). Despite the occasional case study or other anecdotal evidence
however, the literature remains quite limited regarding what these DNP graduates are
currently doing in practice , including how many NPs currently in practice hold a DNP
degree.
Although it was assumed early on in the DNP movement that the practice setting
would be home to the largest numbers of doctorally prepared NPs, it was also assumed
that the academic setting would assimilate a portion of these graduates as educators in
NP programs, members of faculty practice groups, as part of joint appointments bridg-
ing the academic and practice settings, and possibly as educators in undergraduate
clinical courses. However, what has come to pass is that according to Loomis, Willard,
and Cohen (2007), more than 50% of DNP graduates seek employment in the academic
setting.
As discussed elsewhere in this chapter, the DNP as educator is a controversial
issue because DNP curricula do not include courses in education as part of their core
coursework. That said, DNP graduates who obtain elective coursework in educational
pedagogy may arguably become quite successful in the academic setting and bring cur-
rent clinical expertise, advanced educational preparation, and a wealth of experience
from the practice setting to the classroom. For those DNP faculty holding joint appoint-
ments in order to remain current in the chosen NP specialization area, such an arrange-
ment might be very rewarding. This structure allows the continuation of NP practice
and opportunities for involvement in the health care setting at the systems level, as
well as the connection to the academic setting. Joint appointments can also provide an
opportunity for DNP-prepared NP faculty to make significant contributions to health
care organizations in nontraditional ways, such as sitting on nursing leadership councils
and participating in collaborative translational research studies. Joint appointments can
have benefits to the educational setting as well; for example, joint appointments may
provide a means to attract experienced NPs with strong devotion to the clinical practice
setting to the academic setting, helping to alleviate some of the faculty shortage (Bellini,
McCauley, & Cusson, 2012). In the years to come, joint appointments may become a
staple in nursing faculty composition as they have been for decades in medicine.
Perhaps, as time passes and the skill set of DNP graduates becomes clearer, the
ability to appreciate the increased leadership skills and clinical scholarship abilities
brought to the practice arena by DNP-prepared NPs will erase any lingering resent-
ments toward the degree. After all, the goal for DNP education is to benefit health care