Are we ready for advanced nursing practitioners?

Protection of title is a global issue in our profession, as is regulation, mental health, and low remuneration. These issues, coupled with the shortages in the veterinary profession and the high rate of skills attrition, beg the question — how can we create a more sustainable veterinary profession? There has been a lot of discussion recently about advanced practitioners in veterinary nursing, but there seems to be a generalised lack of understanding about the value of these roles have in the veterinary workforce.

In human nursing, professional identity was a driving factor that contributed to value of the nursing profession. From the first nursing titles in the mid-1800s, to formal qualifications and advanced study — as more graduate and postgraduate nurses entered the profession, there was greater leadership development, and better understanding of the nursing role and their value in the healthcare team. Nursing began to establish its own scientific knowledge base contributing to stronger clinical governance frameworks, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and clinical effectiveness. The evolution of nursing professionalism highlighted the important dynamics and constructs of professional roles within a multidisciplinary healthcare framework.