The top 100 cited Nurse Practitioner publications: a bibliometric analysis

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Healthcare Management
• Bibliometrics

Background:

• The Nurse Practitioner (NP) role and practice specialization are increasingly important in healthcare.
• No prior bibliometric evaluation of scholarly work on Nurse Practitioners was found.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify the top 100 cited articles in the Nurse Practitioner domain.
• To conduct a bibliometric analysis of NP research from 2007-2021.

Main Methods:

• Searched the Scopus™ database for Nurse Practitioner studies published between 2007 and 2021.
• Employed bibliometric analysis to identify prolific authors, annual trends, citation rates, countries of origin, and study designs.

Main Results:

• Identified 1768 papers across 360 peer-reviewed journals from 33 countries.
• Analysis revealed key trends in NP research, including influential authors and study designs.

Conclusions:

• The findings indicate a growing body of research on the Nurse Practitioner role and scope of practice.
• This bibliometric evaluation contributes valuable insights into an evolving area of scholarly inquiry.