Position Statement: Nurse Practitioner in Critical Care

Definition The nurse practitioner in critical care (NP-cc) is a registered nurse in an advanced nursing practice (ANP) position with a minimum of a master's in nursing and additional educational preparation from an accredited acute care or critical care NP program and who has clinical expertise in a critical care nursing subspecialty. The NP-cc has advanced knowledge, skill and training in health assessment, physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacology, diagnostic reasoning, clinical decision-making, therapeutic interventions, family nursing, and ethical decision-making. The NP-cc has the authority through an enhanced legislated scope of nursing practice to diagnose, order and interpret diagnostic tests, prescribe and perform restricted procedures (CNA, 2009).