Master of Science in Nursing: Family Nurse Practitioner

The MSN Family Nurse Practitioner track includes 18 courses totaling 45 credit hours. The track begins with nine three-credit core courses that focus on specific roles of the advanced nurse in the healthcare system prior to transitioning into specialty coursework specific to the track.

The curriculum aligns with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Master-Level education preparation standards — including the Master’s Essentials — in addition to the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF) Nurse Practitioner Core Competencies.

M.S. in Nursing Handbook

• Advanced Physical Assessment

  NR553 3 credit hours

  This course builds upon basic health assessment and guides the student to obtain a complete and accurate health assessment, including history, physical examination, and commonly used screening tools, as a foundation for advanced nursing practice with clients across the life span. The course emphasizes critical analysis and synthesis of physical exam data, relevant health history data, critical risk appraisal of the physical and mental status, assessment of nutrition, and anticipatory guidance relevant to health promotion and disease prevention. At the conclusion of the course, the student will utilize distance learning technology to demonstrate a comprehensive physical health assessment.

• Epidemiology and Population Health

  NR514 3 credit hours

  This course provides a foundation of key concepts essential to population-focused nursing, the aggregate, community or population as the unit of care. The focus of the course is on health promotion/disease prevention with emphasis on the advanced nursing role in clinical prevention of disease and care of populations. Applying concepts of primary, secondary, and tertiary health promotion across the lifespan, the student relates the basic concepts of epidemiology to multiple domains of population health, using epidemiology to better understand, characterize, and promote health at a population level.  Disease prevention and health promotion of populations are examined through the study of the occurrence and distribution of health-related states or events, including the study of social determinants of health.

• Healthcare Systems, Nursing Leadership and Advanced Nursing Role

  NR523 3 credit hours

  This course examines the healthcare system and guides students to assess and analyze the healthcare system in the context of advanced practice nursing and the role of advanced practice nurses. The student explores organizational and system science, change theories and social change theories in its application to healthcare. Healthcare leadership including theory and styles as well as contemporary approaches, ethical practice and leadership strategies are examined. Inter/intra professional communication, teamwork, consultation, diversity and collaboration are discussed as cornerstones for patient safety, optimal health outcomes and accountability in health care. The student analyzes and evaluates the intersection of current and emerging healthcare system challenges and advanced practice role dimensions. 

• Health Policy, Advocacy and Economics in Healthcare

  NR524 3 credit hours

  This course examines healthcare delivery in the United States, to include the role of public policy, advocacy, and industry regulation. Health policy perspectives and the analytical tools to understand the national policy-making environment are integrated throughout the course. Key policy issues and core constructs for analysis include national health expenditures and cost containment strategies, patient access and health disparities, health care quality and performance improvement, and workforce policy. Health care reform, future directions and trends, and policy innovations are examined for their impact on advanced nursing practice, service delivery, and health outcomes. Health systems of other developed and developing countries are examined to gain a global perspective and appreciation for a variety of health system attributes.

• Quality Improvement and Patient Safety

  NR533 3 credit hours

  This course introduces the student to the fundamentals of quality improvement science, and its application to quality and safety in healthcare. The student examines quality improvement models in the delivery of healthcare and measures for quality improvement initiatives. Foundations of health care quality and the science underlying patient safety and quality improvement, design and select effective health care measures are explored. The course includes analysis and processes related to patient safety problems using tools such as human factors analysis and discusses systematic quality improvement approaches including the Model for Improvement (MFI) and Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) models to address quality improvement challenges, and strategies to lead a culture of change.

• Informatics & Healthcare Technologies

  NR534 3 credit hours

  This seminar reviews concepts important to implementing and sustaining effective use of technology in the clinical environment.  Security and privacy for the protection of privileged information, effective policy development, testing and implementation are examined.  Concepts of change management as well as informatics role in community/population health monitoring and management are explored.  The student studies the use of technology to generate new evidence, the potential influence of emerging technologies on clinical practice and the importance of developing a caring practice in a high technology environment.

• Advanced Pharmacology

  NR552 3 credit hours

  This course builds on the student’s understanding of fundamental pharmacological principles, including pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, drug metabolism, and dose-response relationships and includes the study of major pharmacological classes related to common disease processes.  The course explores the major pharmacological drug classes and their application to the principles of therapeutic decision-making, including legal and ethical implications.

• Advanced Pathophysiology

  NR548 3 credit hours

  This course examines pathophysiological processes integral to the understanding of human health conditions and disorders across the lifespan. Objective and subjective manifestations of common health problems resulting from environmental, genetic, and stress-related maladaptation are assessed and analyzed. Assessment findings, diagnostic testing, and interventions for specific health problems are discussed. The etiology, epidemiology, and pathophysiology of disorders are reviewed within the context of age, gender, lifestyle and sociocultural determinants. Principles of pathophysiology are applied to recognize clinical signs and symptoms consistent with human health conditions. The impact of health promotion and disease prevention on pathophysiological processes across the lifespan are explored. 

• Advanced Nursing Research and Evidence Based Practice

  NR593 3 credit hours

  This course focuses on the use of the research process in developing new nursing knowledge and applying to an evidence-based practice. The student examines and develops research questions considers theoretical frameworks, methods of data collection and analysis, and the interpretation and use of study findings in providing evidence based care of individuals, families, and communities. The importance of scientific integrity and ethical standards are emphasized and ethical issues in the conduct of research are explored. The student is prepared to critically appraise and utilize research, and identify researchable problems within the context of his/her own practice.