Np Vs Nurse Practitioner

The difference between two key health care team members Physician Assistant (PA) and Nurse Practitioner (NP) can be quite confusing not only to the general public, but employees in the medical field as well because there are many similarities to their education, scope of practice, and legal prescribing authority. However, there is a key difference that separates a NP from a PA and it is the philosophy of the education.
Education
The Board of Registered Nursing (BRN) regulates advanced nursing practice and licensure for the NP. According to the Nurse Practice Act (2018), in order to apply to become a NP, the advanced practice nurse must hold an active Registered Nurse License and possess a master’s of science in nursing from a NP program approved

According to the BRN, the NP does not have an additional scope of practice beyond that of an RN scope, however, the NP can provide medical management based on the condition that a physician is available by phone if needed. A nurse practitioner is defined as a “registered nurse who possesses additional preparation and skills in physical diagnosis, psycho-social assessment, and management of health-illness needs in primary health care” (General information: Nurse Practitioner Practice, 2011). The NP is also not only just a health care provider, but is involved in professional organizations, participates in activities to advance the role and ensure professional standards are being met as a nurse practitioner. The PA is similar to NP in that both are integral members of the health care team. A PA is also responsible for taking medical histories, performing physical exams, ordering and interpreting laboratory tests, diagnosing illness, developing and managing treatment plans, prescribing medications and assisting in surgery (AAPA Scope of Practice, 2017). One of the differences of a PA from a NP is that education philosophy is medical based and focus on treating the disease rather than the person, therefore treatment course for PA focuses more medically than

Both have a similar route to acquiring licensure starting with master’s education, passing a national certifying exam to become nationally certified then state licensed. However, the difference in education is that medical school curriculum is disease centered and focuses on disease pathology, anatomy and physiology. This differs from NP school nursing model curriculum which focuses on the patient’s as a whole person. Scope of practice is similar in that both provide medical management including diagnosing, treating, and interpreting tests; but the NP emphasizes on the nursing model when treating the patient, whereas the PA treats the diagnosis rather than the patient due to the philosophy and values of schooling. Prescribing authority for both health care team members are similar. Both professionals must apply separately for a furnishing number and for a DEA number in order to prescribe schedule II drugs and can prescribe drugs in almost all states, but there must always be a physician supervising within a phone call