Adult/Gerontology — Primary Care Specialty
Overview and Population of Interest
The Adult/Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (AGNP) is a Registered Nurse educated at the master's level as a nurse practitioner. The focus of care for the AGNP is individuals across the adult age spectrum from late adolescence through older adulthood including comprehensive end-of-life care.
Nurse Practitioner Role and Preparation
The AGNP is prepared to implement evidence-based practice guidelines and to critically analyze and adapt healthcare interventions based on individualized assessments of individual/family/community needs. The AGNP practices in the context of community and the social determinants of health with broad knowledge, sensitivity, and awareness of the specific needs of people from diverse populations and cultural backgrounds. Because the health care needs of adults range from wellness to complex illness care, the settings in which the AGNP delivers care may include community health centers and clinics, private medical practices, specialty clinics, health maintenance organizations, Veterans' Administration facilities, Geriatric Evaluation and Management (GEM) units, adult day health centers, assisted living facilities, skilled nursing facilities and other long-term care settings, acute and chronic rehabilitation centers, urgent care and emergency departments. In many cases, AGNPs follow their patients across care settings to maintain quality and safety during care transitions.
Learning Outcomes
Graduates of the UCLA School of Nursing Adult/Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner program assume an advanced practice role in the comprehensive care of patients with health promotion, disease prevention, chronic disease management and short-term illness or injury needs. Additional coursework in occupational health and environment can be added to prepare graduates in providing care to adults in work settings.
Education: Master of Science in Nursing
Credentials
- Eligible for the American Nurses Credentialing Center's (ANCC) Adult/Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner certification exam
- Eligible for the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) Adult/Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner certification exam
- Eligible for prescriptive authority in all 50 states with restrictions as specified by each state
Types of Clinical Care Provided by the Primary Care Adult/Gerontology Nurse Practitioner
- Health promotion and disease prevention activities including screening exams, counseling, providing adult immunizations and ordering/evaluating results of appropriate diagnostic tests
- Comprehensive physical, psychosocial, developmental, sensory, functional and cognitive assessments
- Episodic management of acute conditions, including minor acute injuries and illnesses
- Evaluation and management of chronic conditions common among adults such as HTN, diabetes, stable chronic cardiovascular and neurologic diseases, asthma/COPD, arthritis, osteoporosis
- Evaluation, prevention and management of geriatric syndromes such as delirium, dementia, depression urinary incontinence and falls
- Advance Care Planning and comprehensive end of life care
Advanced Practice Nurses Also Perform These General Functions
- Obtain health histories and perform comprehensive physical examinations, including psychosocial, functional and developmental assessment
- Order and interpret lab results and other diagnostic studies
- Develop differential diagnoses
- Develop/order therapeutic plan of care including prescription medications
- Maintain patient records
- Evaluate patient's response to plan of care and modify as needed
- Provide patient/family counseling and education
- Arrange for patient referrals/consultations
- Participate in research studies
- Collaborate with interdisciplinary health team members
Option for Additional Coursework in Occupational and Environmental Health
Students enrolled in the Adult/Gerontology Primary Nurse Practitioner specialty can elect to take additional courses in the UCLA School of Nursing and School of Public Health to prepare them for a role on interdisciplinary teams addressing worker health and safety in today’s global economy with increasingly complex and diverse work settings. With this option, students are educated to provide continual and comprehensive wellness and illness care to adults by providing preventive health services, patient education, disease management and illness prevention with emphasis on occupational and environmental hazard identification and control, screening, surveillance and rehabilitation of workers. Additional information can be found at Primary Nurse Practitioner Occupational And Environmental Health Focus.