The Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) is a practice doctorate that prepares clinical scholars recognized for outstanding leadership and innovative evidence-based patient/population centered outcomes. The program focuses on interprofessional collaboration and developing competencies in practice, leadership, and quality improvement and safety that lead to enhanced outcomes important to patients, families, providers, and organizations.
The BSN to DNP curriculum is in line with the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties' (NONPF), the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists (NACNS) and American Organizations of Nurse Executives (AONE) commitment to move all entry-level nurse practitioner education to the DNP degree by 2025. The program is not an addition to master's studies, but rather an integration of the objectives and learning opportunities required for attainment of doctoral level core and population-focused competencies.
The Family Nurse Practitioner pathway is designed to prepare skilled Family Nurse Practitioners for work in primary care clinics, managing acute and chronic health conditions across the lifespan. The primary practice site for FNPs is outpatient primary care practices or specialty clinics in the outpatient setting. Health promotion and disease prevention are integral in the NP’s practice. Graduates of this program are registered nurses with advanced education who are able to assess, make diagnoses, manage health care, prescribe medicines and evaluate care for persons who are ill, injured and/or have chronic diseases.
The NP pathway offers a part-time and full-time options to fit the schedules of working nurses. Many classes are offered online but there are on-campus learning requirements in some classes. On-campus learning consists of standardized patient visits, labs with clinical skills and physical assessments, and objective structured clinical exams. For additional information about this program, please contact nursing@ouhsc.edu.
Post-Graduate tracks are available. For additional information, please contact nursing@ouhsc.edu.
The Family Nurse Practitioner curriculum prepares graduates to apply for and sit for the American Nurses Credentialing Center and/or American Association of Nurse Practitioners Family Nurse Practitioner-primary care certification exam.
Residency requirements: Due to federal regulations from the Department of Education, the College of Nursing currently accepts applications for its online doctoral degree programs from residents of the states participating in the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (SARA). A list of participating states can be found at: https://nc-sara.org/directory/. Applicants are encouraged to check with their local State Boards of Nursing regarding any specific professional licensure requirements prior to applying or enrolling.