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Activities and procedures performed by nurse practitioners in emergency care settings
1Division of Emergency Care and Emergency Nurse Practitioner Education, School of Nursing, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA. fcole@son1.nur.uth.tmc.edu
Introduction:
Although nurse practitioners (NPs) have been practicing in emergency care (EC) settings for at least 25 years, little is known about the activities and procedures they perform.
Methods:
A questionnaire was sent by either by E-mail or US mail to a convenience sample of 96 subjects. These 96 NPs were instructed to duplicate the questionnaire and distribute it to other NPs they may know who also work in EC settings. The questionnaire contained 71 activities and procedures obtained from Clinical Procedures in Emergency Medicine by Roberts and Hedges. The NPs were asked to rate the 71 activities and procedures according to the frequency with which they performed them, where they learned to perform them, and how important they believe it is that NPs in EC settings know how to perform them.
Results:
Seventy-two NPs in EC settings responded. Fifty percent (n = 36) or more had performed 35 of the 71 activities and procedures. Almost every NP (n = 71) had used fluorescein staining, and only 3 procedures--culdocentesis, venous cutdown, and insertion of pins for skeletal traction--had never been performed. The majority of NPs learned to perform each of the activities and procedures through on-the-job training and continuing education courses. Fifty percent or more identified 56 activities and procedures as being important for NPs to know how to perform in EC settings.
Discussion:
The results of this study indicate that whereas 50% or more of the NPs in EC settings had performed 35 out of 71 activities and procedures, 50% or more indicated that a larger skill set of 56 activities and procedures is believed to be needed for practice.