Essay Sample on Nursing Specialties

Step 1: Comparison of Nursing Specialties

My first choice specialty is a family nurse practitioner and the second preference is an acute care nurse practitioner. A family Nurse Practitioner is a registered nurse who works in clinics and various other outpatient facilities. They provide treatment to all patients including those with acute conditions provided that it is not life-threatening and the life of the patient is not deteriorating. The peculiarity with FNP which distinguishes it the rest of nursing specialties is the fact that the practitioner is trained to work with people within the context of a family or clinical setting over a long period. They maintain and improve the health and wellness of the patients in the long term with a particular focus on providing preventive care.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Contrary to the FNP who has a long term interaction with individuals who have stable health conditions to ensure preventive care, is acute care nurses respond to immediate urgent health problems or exacerbated chronic illnesses. They attend to emergency health situations such as severe illnesses or injury hence do not have a long term history with the patient before reporting to the health facility. The ACN works in the setting of intensive care unit, inpatient hospitals or emergency room to diagnose medical problems, prefer treatments and medications to that help the sick person to stabilize after a sudden illness or injury. Most of the conditions that FNPs handle are life-threatening. An ACNP usually reports to the head nurse or charge nurse while FNP works closely with the physicians.

Step 2: Justification of Nursing Specialty

Being a Family Nurse Practitioner involves working closely with the physician which increases the complementarity of care and medication. It reduces the chances and risks of nursing errors since the doctor provides adequate information regarding a patient's conditions. It also involves a long term engagement with the patient which increases the chances of providing individualized and evidence-based nursing support. These will result in not only job satisfaction but also a general improvement in healthcare quality. On the other hand, acute nursing care involves providing accelerated care to patients suffering from severe or acute conditions. This implies responding to a demanding healthcare situation, alleviating attain and suffering and saving a life. Collectively when these are achieved, the practitioner gains a sense of job satisfaction. It also increases the response nursing skills, attentiveness and collaboration since slight errors may result in a fatality. However, I take FNP as a priority due to the reduced rigor, low burnouts and lesser criticality associated with it.

Step 3: Professional Organizations

The American Nurses Association (ANA) is a professional organization for all the nurses of all calibers in the United States. Its goal is to foster nursing professionalism and ensure adequately trained nurses who provide high-quality care. It promotes the welfare of nurses and champion for political goodwill in addressing health issues that affect the public. To become a member, one needs to be a registered nurse practitioner with a certificate of practice. He or she then registers for a desired category of membership to get the benefits accruing from the organization.