Graduate program: advanced practice nurses in the home

This article is a curriculum overview of a graduate program of the Advanced Practice Home Care Nursing (APHCN) Program, which began at the School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco, in 1996. A historical perspective of home care and the need for advanced practice nurses in the home care industry is provided. Curricular components of the APHCN Program are outlined. The roles of the home care clinical nurse specialist, home care nurse practitioner, and home care administrator are presented. Finally, a discussion is presented in which home care nursing demonstrates the efficacy of the advanced practice role and the need for well designed outcomes-based research.