Does your state suck as much as Georgia?

Each state legislature decides the scope of their nurses' practice under the Nurse Practice Act. When you are a RN, it is important to know what your scope entails; however, its going to be about the same from state to state. If you are an advanced practice nurse (APN), this is NOT the case.

So first, let me explain how much nurses love their abbreviation, love adding and/or changing them whenever we feel like we want to further confuse the public. An Advanced Practice Nurse includes a nurse with a master's and/or doctorate degree. They normally practice either as a Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS), Nurse Practitioner (NP), Nurse Mid-Wife or Certified Registered Nurse Anethestist (CRNA) but could also be a nurse executive, nurse researcher, etc.

Each state determines within their Nurse Practice Act if a APN can diagnose, prescribe and hospitalize their patients. Before deciding on going through a master's or doctoral program to become an APN, you NEED to know your Nurse Practice Act. Before you move or take a job in another state, you NEED to know their Nurse Practice Act.

For example, in New Jersey an APN you can diagnose, treat, prescribe controlled substances, pronounce death, receive/dispense drug samples from pharmaceutical companies fairly independently but you do need a collaborating physician on premises.

In that state of Georgia, functions of an APN must be delegated by a physician under their Nurse Protocol Agreement. Their needs to be an ability for "immediate consultation with the delegating physician." They are not able to prescribe schedule II controlled substances (which for my practice, would be crippling since I could not prescribe Ritalin to children with ADHD). Georgia was the last state holding out the ability for APNs to prescribe. As of July 1, 2006 prescriptive authority was passed but with great limitations to practice independently from physicians.

You can look up this information on your state's governmental website but if you are like me and constantly move or haven't decided where you are even going for nursing school...then please, DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME!!!

Go to www.webnp.net. This site includes the full Pearson Report that will break down every single Nurse Practice Act in the country and even compares them side by side. It is constantly being updated and is the best place to find information regarding each state's prescriptive authority.

Trust me if you go through all the hard work it takes to become an APN, you are going to want to practice to your fullest potential. Plus, patients will be difficult to keep if you cannot give them the drugs or treatments they need.