Family Nurse Practitioner

Dr. Mary Jane S. Hanson, Director of Graduate Program
570-941-4060
Maryjane.hanson@scranton.edu

The Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) Program prepares registered nurses to assess, diagnose, and treat common episodic and chronic disorders, and to provide health-promotion and diseaseprevention interventions and counseling. The use of clinical decision-making and diagnostic reasoning skills is emphasized. The graduate will be prepared to provide direct patient care to individuals across the life span in primary care settings.

Graduates of the program will be eligible for certification as an FNP in Pennsylvania through the Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing. In addition, graduates of the program will be eligible to take the national certification examination for FNP from both the American Nurses Credentialing Center and American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.

CURRICULUM

The FNP program is offered as a 46-credit master's degree for baccalaureate-prepared-nurses, and as a 27-credit post-master’s certificate program for nurses already holding a nursing master's degree in advanced practice. Transcripts of students with an entry level master’s in nursing degree will be evaluated on an individual basis for transfer credit. In addition, NURS 583, Independent Study, may be utilized to perform a research project, to enhance an area of primary practice, or to take an elective that will broaden the student's knowledge base.

Each student is required to complete a clinical practicum. The practicum (NURS 542, 552, 562, 572) is taken over four semesters. Students are expected to obtain a practitioner(s) who will serve as preceptor(s) for the clinical practicum in the FNP program. The preceptor must be a certified registered nurse practitioner, certified nurse midwife or a licensed physician. Additional clinical preceptorships may be arranged to meet the needs of the individual student. Each credit of clinical equals 125 clock hours per semester so that total clinical practicum time is 875 hours for the FNP program.