The close integration of practice, teaching,
scholarship, and service is foundational to the
NP program, translating knowledge to patient
care and preparing students for this role.
A GROWING NEED FOR PRIMARY
CARE PROVIDERS
Approximately 100,000 Michiganders
will reach age 65 every year for the next
20 years. By 2030, one in five Americans
will be over age 65. Older people have
more chronic conditions and are the
highest users of healthcare services.
Full implementation of the Affordable
Care Act will mean the shift of 1.5 million
Michiganders (30-35 million Americans)
from “uninsured” to “insured,” further
increasing healthcare demand.
Michigan has more than 500 federally
designated Health Professional Shortage
Areas (HPSA) including 224 primary
care HPSAs.
Only 39% of Michigan’s APRNs practice
in a primary care setting and 9% in
women’s health.
70% of Michigan’s NPs are age 45 or older.
HIGH QUALITY OF CARE
APRNs have an excellent track record
in disease prevention, diagnosing,
and managing the care of patients
with multiple chronic diseases.
OUR PRACTICE FACULTY
• Teaching from Experience: Faculty
practice provides practical examples
which illustrate and relate to clinical
issues students bring to class, and offer
an opportunity to ground guidelines and
treatments in real world situations.
• Exemplifying Collaboration: As
practitioners, faculty demonstrate the
philosophy and strengths of the NP role in
collaborative interprofessional healthcare
teams in clinical settings.
• Preparing Decision Makers: Students
understand that the high standards to
which they are held reflect the variety
and depth of decisions they will be called
upon to make as practitioners—decisions
grounded in evidence-based practice as
well as academic perspectives.
• B roadening Awareness
of Community Healthcare:
Through faculty practices,
students are exposed to
healthcare settings and
populations with which they may
have had little or no experience—
especially in underserved and
diverse populations. They also
gain awareness of healthcare
costs, payment systems, and
access, as well as healthcare
policies that impact quality
and outcomes.
• Modeling Lifelong Learning:
The need to stay current on
evidence-based practice and
the latest guidelines serves
the students by setting expectations to
be lifelong learners. Faculty members
actively integrate new knowledge into
their practices.
• Preparing Patient Advocates: Practicing
faculty offer powerful examples of the
need for and role of NPs as advocates
for appropriate or additional healthcare
services, especially for the underserved.
• Keeping Pace with Technology:
Practice faculty work with fast changing
healthcare technology and offer current
perspectives on its opportunities
and challenges regarding issues such
as documentation, electronic health
records, billing, coding, meaningful use,
International Classification of Diseases
(ICD-10), and audits.
MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF NURSING • NURSING.MSU.EDU
Infusing Educatio