Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioners (AGACNPs) play an instrumental role in the medical arena. Their scope of operation is one that concerns all individuals from the adolescent stage to old age. By handling issues that concern adolescents and adults, practitioners come across a range of ailments and challenges that require professionalism and medical expertise. Besides providing direct medical assistance to patients, the practitioners also offer counseling services.
The implication of their operations means that the practitioners should have a wide spectrum of medical experience and qualifications acquired from renowned institutions of learning. Bahouth, Blum, and Simone (2013) highlight that although the laws that govern operations of the practitioners vary from one state to another; they still demonstrate some set of similarities. It is within this context that the essay uses qualifications, scope-of-operation, and salary to asses my choice or interest to work as an Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner.
My choice or interest in AGACNP emanates from the passion and love that I have towards the improvement of human life and the minimization of suffering amongst the young and the adults. Due to my inclination towards adults and the youth in the adolescent stage, I chose AGACNP as the medical practice, which best suits my interest and desire.
To work as an Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner, one has to acquire the requisite medical skills from renowned institutions of higher learning. The acquisition of the relevant skills is very practical in boosting the quality of services that patients receive whenever they visit medical centers. Over the recent past, education and certification of AGACN practitioners were distinct from other medical practitioners.
Conversely, with the advent of a consensus, the framework is now changing to ensure that the practitioners receive education and certification together with others in the medical arena. In the assertion of the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (2010), the practitioners need to be holders of a bachelor’s or master’s degree in nursing so that they get the qualification. Additionally, after acquiring a degree in the medical field, one should have a certification from the Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioners Board.
Fundamentally, the practitioners handle a wide range of ailments that affect people from the adolescent stage to old age. Some of the operations offered by the practitioners include screening, regular assessment, immunization, and checkups. In the case of the elders or those suffering from terminal problems, the practitioners need to engage in regular checkups, which establish the progress made by the subject individuals.
According to the Ministry of Health, Nursing Council of New Zealand (2009) and Doherty (2015), AGACNPs perform preventive and treatment measures aimed at advancing the quality of human life and minimization of suffering. The assertion clarifies the essence of the operations undertaken by the practitioners. As such, the roles played by practitioners in the gerontology arena are important and scholars cannot downplay them in their quest to examine the relevance of the concept.
My desired salary has to be within the provisions of the state, company, and level of education. Apparently, the salaries of AGACN practitioners vary in relation to the state where they work, the hiring company, and their level of education. As such, those practitioners with higher education levels earn much more than their counterparts, who have levels of education that are slightly lower.
For instance, in the United States, those practitioners, who have master’s degrees in nursing earn about $106,000, whereas, those , who have a bachelors degree earn about $76,000 (Bodenheimer & Grumbach, 2012; American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2010). In Atlanta, AGACNPs, who have a master’s degree earn up to $106,000, while those, who have a bachelor’s degree earn about $97,000.
References
American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2010).Adult-Gerontology Primary Care
Nurse Practitioner Competencies. New York: New York University.
American Association of Critical-Care Nurses. (2012). AACN Scope and Standards for Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Practice. New York: AACN Critical Care.
Bahouth, M., Blum, K., & Simone, S. (2013). Transitioning into Hospital Based Practice: A Guide for Nurse Practitioners and Administrators. New York: Springer Publishing.
Bodenheimer T., & Grumbach K. (2012). Understanding Health Policy: A Clinical Approach. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Doherty G. (2015). Current Diagnosis and Treatment: Surgery. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Ministry of Health, Nursing Council of New Zealand. (2009). Nurse Practitioners: A Healthy future for New Zealand. Wellington: Ministry of Health.