Clinical Nurse Practitioner Job Description, Key Duties and Responsibilities

This post provides complete information on the job description of a clinical nurse practitioner, to boost your knowledge of what they do.

It highlights the key duties, tasks, and responsibilities that commonly make up the clinical nurse practitioner work description.

What Does a Clinical Nurse Practitioner Do?

A clinical nurse practitioner is an individual who has concluded a 4-year nursing degree and passed his/her nursing licensing tests to become an accredited nurse.

The major focus of the clinical nurse practitioner is in a particular population or a specific location of specialty.

The significance of a clinical nurse at any health care facility, be it a research facility, hospital, institution or clinic cannot be undermined.

He/she is an essential part of the healthcare industry, playing paramount roles in offering outstanding quality care.

The clinical nurse practitioner job description also involves delivering complete patient care, overseeing less experienced personnel, acting as a mentor to other personnel, as well as tutoring and overseeing them.

They may be in a position to find out facts, conduct researches and apply research results for the enhancement of quality patient care and encourage changes as required.

Some of the key areas in which a clinical nurse practitioner functions include oncology, psychiatric, gerontological, community health, women’s health, adult care, acute care and family, neonatal and pediatric care.

A clinical nurse practitioner principally has four essential constituents of his/her role. These include the roles of a consultant, researcher, educator and clinical expert.

He/she combines these four units into his/her own practice location to offer variety and dynamism in a complex environment.

Besides these significant functions the obligations of a clinical nurse practitioner will involve delivering complete patient care and acting as a mentor to other personnel observing and supervising inexperienced personnel recognizing and researching issues while applying results of research to the enhancement of the nursing of patients.

He/she performs the functions of deliberating on intricate nursing issues, reassessing complete patient care, acquiring tools to enhance the quality of patient nursing care and instituting change as required.

Clinical Nurse Practitioner Job Description Example/Sample/Template

Below is an example of clinical nurse practitioner job description, containing key duties, tasks, and responsibilities they are expected to carry out:

• Develop a system of nursing by executing and introducing substitute solutions that will handle intricate system problems and/or patient care situations
• Function as a clinical professional in the transfer of perioperative patient care
• Offer assistance by providing surgical care in relation with state, federal and facility requirements
• Combine research into the perioperative clinical set up through execution of evidence based practice
• Establish, execute, organize, and assess educational programs for the community, perioperative patients, their families and the staff
• Act as an agent of transformation to establish performance standard systems and to improve perioperative patient results
• Encourage patient care by working together with nursing staff in areas such as evaluating current practices, reviewing alternatives, deliberating with patient care administrators and offering assessment to personnel
• Take decisive steps on allocation of resources and personnel
• Generate special treatment plans following after patient examinations
• Give education to patients and their families on managing their situations.
• Integrate practices to enhance staff synergy.

The above job description sample can be used in writing resumes for available clinical nurse practitioner positions.

Clinical Nurse Practitioner Requirements: Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities for Career Success

The qualifications and abilities below are essential for the effective functioning of a clinical nurse practitioner:

• Master’s degree in clinical nurse specialization with focus from an authorized school of nursing
• Contemporary licensure as an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse with at least five years of clinical experience, two of which must have been in a clinical nurse function
• Significant complex problem solving skills
• Outstanding ability to care for others and take up leadership functions in areas related to healthcare.