I decided to pursue an advanced practice major due to my interest in enhancing the nursing profession by contributing towards the provision of high-quality healthcare service delivery apart from research activities. An advanced practice nurse (APN) is a highly-educated nurse with advanced knowledge, skills, and clinical education whose role is to provide basic healthcare services that are focused on diagnosing, treating, and preventing illnesses as well as referring patients to specialists apart from prescribing medication. Family nurse practitioners (FNP) are APNs whose role is focused on providing family-based healthcare services to patients in a family setting (Lambert & Housden, 2017). Interestingly, FNPs can work autonomously or in collaboration with other healthcare specialists to achieve this primary care service delivery.

            FNPs could incorporate the utilization of evidence-based practice (EBP) into their caregiving activities in an effort to enhance patient outcomes. Integrating EBP into healthcare service delivery promotes the quality of care provided to patients since it aids decision-making activities made by healthcare providers (Lambert & Housden, 2017). In this respect, FNPs could use EBP to prevent infections among family members to minimize hospital visits, maintain regular checks such as blood pressure monitoring among the elderly members in a family, and providing age-specific care to all members of the family with a view to enhancing their health statuses. Thus, FNPs can use EBP to improve family-based healthcare service provision in this way.

            For one to be a successful nurse practitioner, it is imperative to possess various skills and personality traits. For instance, one should constantly seek information concerning the nursing profession in their area of specialization in order to keep abreast of the dynamic trends in the profession. Besides, one should be culturally sensitive when providing care to optimize patient outcomes through the delivery of culturally congruent healthcare services. Further, one ought to possess excellent communication skills as well as compassion, respect, and leadership skills to effectively deliver healthcare services as required (Balestra, 2019). In connection with observing these skills, I will endeavor to enhance my caregiving abilities to foster success in my nursing career.

                                                                                           References

Balestra, M. L. (2019). Family nurse practitioner scope of practice issues when treating patients with mental health issues. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 15(7), 479-482. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nurpra.2018.11.007

Lambert, L. K., & Housden, L. M. (2017). Nurse practitioner engagement in research. Canadian Oncology Nursing Journal, 27(1), 107–110. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6516367/