Nurse practitioners in acute care units

The launch of the UKCC's The Scope of Professional Practice and measures to reduce junior doctors' working hours have once again raised debate on what roles are appropriate for nurses. For many, the development of the nurse practitioner role, with its advanced skills and increased levels of autonomy, offers a very desirable template. Much can be learned from the experience of US nurses, and this article describes a relatively recent innovation--the development of the nurse practitioner role in the acute hospital setting. The role is not a physician substitute; rather, it strengthens and promotes a multidisciplinary approach to patient care and presents the nurse with an opportunity to improve the delivery of care provided in the inpatient environment. Most significantly, it remains a nursing role.