Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (PNP/ACPNP)
Do you want to provide care for the increasing millions of children living in the United States, many of whom have no usual source of health care? Are you interested in helping children with acute or critical illnesses? Vanderbilt offers a primary care and acute care track for Pediatric Nurse Practitioners. Choose the one that’s right for you – enjoying the convenience of flexible course delivery and distance formats during your specialty education.
What Will You Do as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner?
You will provide care for children from birth to 21 years of age in a variety of pediatric settings, and, in special situations, to individuals older than the age of 21. The care you provide may vary depending on the track you choose:
- Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (PNP) – You will focus on providing primary care to children and their families.
- Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioners (ACPNP) – You will provide care for acutely ill, critically ill, and chronically ill children and their families.
Where Will You Practice? (clinical sites)
A variety of practice settings are available to primary and acute care Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, both during your Vanderbilt program and upon graduation and certification:
- Outpatient Pediatric Specialty Clinics
- Health Departments
- Preschools and Elementary Schools
- Private Pediatric Practices
- Community Agencies Caring for Technology-Dependent Children
Acute Care PNPs also practice in:
- Pediatric Intensive Care Units
- Emergency Departments
- Sub-Specialty Clinics such as Hematology-Oncology
How Will Vanderbilt Prepare You for Practice?
The Vanderbilt School of Nursing program offers experienced faculty and regular exposure to recognized experts and specialists working in fields such as pediatrics, neonatology, pediatric cardiology, autism and many more. Vanderbilt Children’s Hopsital and Vanderbilt Medical Center are at the cutting-edge of clincial practice and research in pediatrics. Your access as a PNP student to these facilities and experts is a one-of-a-kind learning opportunity.
The Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (PNP) track provides a broad theoretical and research foundation in advanced concepts of parent, child and adolescent nursing. An expert preceptorship provides an immersion experience with a clinical mentor – combining theory, research and practice in a clinical setting. Direct clinical experience is provided through observation and participation on a health care team in a primary care setting. This track is available for students with or without a nursing background and can also be taken by the post-master’s student.
Vanderbilt School of Nursing was one of the first schools to establish a Pediatric Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (ACPNP) program for RNs. The program has grown in response to an increasing number of children under the age of 20 living in the United States, including the millions who will develop an acute health episode requiring special health care needs during their childhood. It prepares nurse practitioners to provide care for acutely ill, critically ill, and chronically ill children and their families. Clinical experiences are arranged across a variety of settings and include hospitals, pediatric intensive care units, emergency departments, and sub-specialty clinics. Primary care Pediatric Nurse Practitioners who want to move to the acute care setting are encouraged to apply for the post-master’s curriculum in this specialty, which can be completed in 2 semesters of part-time study.
Learn from Where You Live – Convenient for Working Nurses and Others
The PNP specialty program for both tracks will be offered in a modified learning (block) format that allows students to attend graduate school without having to relocate or give up employment. Distance and distributed course delivery methods, courses offered in blocks of time on campus (including weekends), online conferencing and clinical practicum placement in your home area where possible let you earn your MSN degree without being away from home for extended periods.
