Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner

The family psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner is an advanced clinician who has achieved a Master of Science in Nursing and provides psychiatric/mental health services to individuals across the lifespan.  The role includes diagnosis, provision of therapies, and medication management for individuals with psychiatric/mental health problems. Health promotion, disease prevention and management of mental health symptoms along with family consultation and education are included in the role. The family psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner practices in various clinical settings including acute care and chronic care hospitals, community agencies, long term care facilities, home care, and outpatient offices. There are a total of 44 credit hours in the specialty with 655 clinical hours.

The psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner graduate is prepared to:

1. Provide expert outcome-oriented nursing therapeutics for patients with mental health problems to promote improved health and enhanced quality of life.
2. Manage, integrate and coordinate patient care services across the mental health care continuum.
3. Develop and provide patient and staff educational services to promote positive patient health care outcomes.
4. Consult and collaborate with members of the multidisciplinary health care team to support delivery of quality patient care.
5. Incorporate best practice evidence to investigate, promote, and evaluate nursing therapies and pharmacotherapy that support evidence for positive patient care outcomes.
6. Advocate for patients and families to provide cost-effective, culturally competent, ethical, quality care in a variety of health care settings.
7. Model responsibility for continued professional development, integrity, accountability, competence, and credentialing as a family psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner.