Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 9, 2026
Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale
Published on: August 25, 2014
New challenges, new answers: pediatric nurse practitioners and the care of adolescents
P Nerdahl1, D Berglund, L H Bearinger
1St Paul Public Schools, Minn., USA.
Introduction:
Since the 1950s, patterns of morbidity and mortality among adolescents have shifted to social and environmental causes. This study examines pediatric nurse practitioners' (PNPs') self-assessed competencies in addressing the common health concerns of adolescents.
Method:
The analysis used a sample of 257 PNPs drawn from a larger national data set of 637 nurses randomly sampled from 3 nursing organizations. Factors associated with self-perceived knowledge or skill and interest in training for 28 common health concerns of adolescents were analyzed using Chi square, t test, and Pearson's correlation. Barriers and attractions to working with adolescents were also investigated.
Results:
The greatest deficits in self-perceived knowledge or skill, as well as low interest in training and low perceived relevance to practice, were around issues of gangs, gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender youth, HIV/AIDS, and counseling about a positive pregnancy test. Also, PNPs identified the lack of resources appropriate for adolescent referrals as the greatest barrier to working with this population.
Discussion:
PNPs assessed their lowest competencies in some of the areas that present the greatest threats to adolescents' health and well-being. These deficits suggest needed curricular shifts in entry-level and advanced-level preparation of PNPs, as well as new priorities for continuing education.
Related Concept Videos
01:28Current Trends in Nursing I
01:30Current Trends in Nursing II
01:30Specialized Care Centers and Settings-II
Rural health centers are specialized care facilities in remote locations with very few medical personnel. The primary care providers who run the centers are mostly Registered Nurse Practitioners. Here, emergency treatment is provided to critically ill or injured patients before they are transferred to the closest hospital. Fortunately, due to advancement in technology, many rural healthcare facilities and professionals have easy access to diagnostic and treatment...
01:21Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-I
Physicians
The physician's primary responsibility is to diagnose illness and direct the medical or surgical treatment of the condition. The authority to admit patients to a healthcare agency or institution and practice care within that setting is granted to physicians by the healthcare agency or institution itself.
01:22The Professional Nurse
Communication skills: These are critical characteristics, especially speaking and listening.
01:17Ethical Dilemmas I
Let us explore some examples to understand the potentially complex moral decisions nurses face.
Take the case of caring for minors, particularly in areas related to reproductive...