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Introduction
A nursing practitioner is an advanced practice registered nurse granted a broad range of privileges and authority. According to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (2021), nurse practitioners can act as primary or specialty care providers, carry out patient examinations, order diagnostic tests, deliver treatment, and prescribe a variety of medications. However, various states in the United States of America have different regulations concerning the prescriptive authority of nursing practitioners. This essay will examine such requirements for nursing practitioners in the state of New York.
Requirements for Nursing Practitioners in the State of New York
Prescriptive authority is the legally granted ability of medical professionals, including nursing practitioners, to prescribe various medications, including controlled substances. In order to be awarded prescriptive authority in the state of New York, nurses are required to complete a nursing practitioner educational program registered by the New York State Education Department (NYSED) (NYSED, 2017). It should be noted that to qualify for such an education program, one should possess a registered professional nurse license that allows them to practice in the state of New York. NYSED recognizes nursing practitioners in a variety of specialty practice areas, including acute care, family health, community health, gerontology, neonatology, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, perinatology, women’s health, and oncology, among others (NYSED, 2020). Thus, nurses should provide proof of education program completion to receive a nursing practitioner certification.
All prospective nursing practitioners should provide proof of pharmacology coursework completion. NYSED accepts completion of three semester hours of pharmacology within a nursing practitioner educational program as well as a comparable in content and scope combination of courses (NYSED, 2020). NYSED (2020) also allows for an alternative track of examination in pharmacotherapeutics as recognition of pharmacology course completion. The content of such a course should incorporate information on medication management, pain management, and appropriate prescribing practices (New York State Department of Health, 2021). Future nursing practitioners also should learn how to prevent addiction, recognize signs of patients developing dependence on the prescribed medication, and respond to medication abuse and addiction (New York State Department of Health, 2021). Furthermore, during the course on pharmacology, New York State prescription law and types of prescriptions should be thoroughly discussed to ensure prospective nursing practitioners are aware of legal guidelines on prescribing medications. Thus, knowledge of pharmacology and prescription regulations is paramount for obtaining prescriptive authority in New York State.
Nursing practitioner certification does not automatically award a practitioner the prescriptive authority. In order to be recognized as a nurse with prescribing privileges, one needs to complete several tasks after obtaining the nursing practitioner certificate from NYSED. Nursing practitioners are to obtain a National Provider Identifier (NPI) from the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services and a Federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) number from the Department of Justice (NYSED, 2017). These identifications are required to reduce the risk of fraud and transaction errors and facilitate transparency in prescription controlled substances. In addition, nursing practitioners are required to acquire authorization to prescribe controlled medications from the Department of Health and, if needed, official prescription forms eligible in the state of New York (NYSED, 2017). Official prescription forms are legal documents that grant patients access to controlled substances prescribed to them. Authorization with the health Department allows to prescribe controlled and non-controlled substances directly to the pharmacy through electronic prescribing applications. Overall, nursing practitioners need to be registered with the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services, the Department of Health, and the Department of Justice to be granted prescriptive authority.
Registered and licensed nursing practitioners in the state of New York can prescribe a variety of medications to their patients. These include both controlled and non-controlled substances as well as medical devices for the treatment and alleviation of a variety of conditions. Thus, in New York State, nursing practitioners with a collaborative agreement with a New York State licensed physician can prescribe Schedule II, III, IV, and V medications (Kuzma & Ammerman, 2021). Thus, nursing practitioners are legally permitted to prescribe drugs with a high potential for harmful use that can lead to the development of psychological and physical dependence, such as methadone and amphetamine (Nurse Journal, 2022). Low to moderate potential medication for harmful use and dependence can also be prescribed by nursing practitioners. For example, prescriptions for ketamine, Vicodin, and diazepam can be issued by professional nurses in the state of New York (Nurse Journal, 2022). Thus, New York State nursing practitioners are not overly restricted in their prescriptive privileges and can prescribe a wide variety of controlled and non-controlled substances to their patients.
Conclusion
In summary, nursing practitioners are advanced practice medical professionals who have many authorities, including but not limited to medication prescription. In order to qualify for prescribing privileges, nursing practitioners should complete relevant education with pharmacology coursework. They are also required to obtain an NPI from the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services and a DEA number from the New York State Department of Justice and register with the Department of Health to be permitted to give out electronic and written prescriptions. All the mentioned steps allow nursing practitioners to prescribe different types of controlled and non-controlled substances to their patients.
References
American Association of Nurse Practitioners. (2021). What’s a nurse practitioner (NP)? Web.
Kuzma, E., & Ammerman, B. (2021). Can nurse practitioners prescribe medicines? NPSchools. Web.
New York State Department of Health. (2021). Mandatory prescriber education. Web.
Nurse Journal. (2022). Can nurse practitioners prescribe medication? NurseJournal. Web.
NYSED. (2017). Practice information: Prescription privileges. NYS Office of the Professions – State Education Department. Web.
NYSED. (2020). NYS nursing: License requirements. NYS Office of the Professions – State Education Department. Web.
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