Daemen College : Academics & Research : Division of Health & Human Services : Nursing : Graduate Programs : Doctor of Nursing Practice

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

With the knowledge explosion in healthcare, the present preparation of an Advance Practice Nurse (APN) at the Master’s level is insufficient to meet the needs of the consumer. Present curricula do not provide adequate knowledge and skills in many aspects related to patient care, such as informatics, technology, and health care policy (Apold, 2007).  A Doctor of Nursing Practice Program will afford practicing APNs the opportunity to gain knowledge regarding the necessary attributes needed for practice at the doctorate level.

Program Objectives

Upon completion of the Doctorate of Nursing Practice Program, the graduate will:

1. Integrate nursing science with knowledge from ethics, the biophysical, psychosocial, analytical, and organizational sciences as the basis to attend to health and illness experiences of individuals, groups, and communities.
2. Demonstrate systems analysis to work collaboratively in the development, implementation, and evaluation of quality health care models.
3. Use analytic methods to critically appraise literature and evidence from the health sciences in the development of practice guidelines and deliverance of direct patient care to individuals, groups, and communities.
4. Design, select, use, evaluate and analyze quality metrics in a variety of health care settings.
5. Demonstrate leadership in the evaluation and resolution of ethical and legal issues within healthcare systems relating to the use of information, information technology, communication networks, and patient care technology.
6. Demonstrate leadership in the development and implementation of institutional, local, state, federal, and/or international health policy through critical appraisal of health policy proposals, health policies and related issues.
7. Formulate and deliver population focused health care on the basis of synthesis of epidemiological, biostatistical, environmental, psychosocial dimensions, and cultural diversity and evaluation of health care delivery models.
8. Contribute to professional nursing through leadership, education, and advocacy within the policy and health care communities.

Admission Requirements

Applicants must meet the following criteria for graduate admission:

Possession of a baccalaureate degree in nursing from an NLNAC or CCNE  accredited college or university, or an equivalent degree from a foreign university or college.

1. Master’s degree in advance nursing practice from an NLNAC or CCNE accredited nursing program.
2. New York State licensure to practice as a Registered Nurse (RN).
3. New York State licensure as an Advance Practice Nurse (APN) or eligibility to practice according to specialty standards.
4. Three reference letters attesting to applicant’s academic ability and potential. One letter must be from a professional colleague (waived for Daemen College MS graduates).
5. A written personal goal statement that is congruent with program goals objectives.
6. Submission of a resume or curriculum vitae.
7. Previous completion of graduate or undergraduate statistics course with grade of C or better.
8. Previous completion of the following graduate level nursing courses (or their equivalent) with a grade B or better: Advanced Health Assessment, Advanced Pathophysiology, Advanced Pharmacology.
9. Personal interview with DNP faculty member.

Program Requirements

Students must possess a Master’s degree as described in the previous section to be matriculated into the program. Timeline for completion of the program for part-time students is 27-36 months. The maximum timeline for completion of the program is 5 years. Required courses include:

NUR 606  Applied Statistics for EBP (3)
NUR 608  Practice Theories (2)
NUR 610  Organizational Theory & Health Care Management (2)
NUR 612  Environmental and Genetic Influences on Health (2)
NUR 614  Ethical Issues in Advanced Nursing Practice (2)
NUR 616  Leadership Development (2)
NUR 618  Informatics and Related Technology for Advanced Practice (1)
NUR 621  Scholarly Writing in Health Care (2)
NUR 623  Research for EBP (3)
NUR 625  Public Policy and Health Care Financing (3)
NUR 627  Clinical Theories (2)
NUR 702  Clinical Internship (8)
NUR 704  Scholarly Project (4)

               Total     36 Credits