Dual Role (Family NP/Emergency NP)

The University of South Alabama (USA) dual FNP/ENP program is offered as a master’s degree program.

With the combination of dynamic coursework, on-campus skills intensives, and clinical experiences, the dual FNP/ENP curriculum prepares students to provide care to patients of all ages. Clinical settings may include primary care clinics, urgent care offices, emergency departments, and emergency ground/air transport services. Our rigorous FNP/ENP curriculum consists of the following:

• 57 credit hours
• 840 practicum hours  
• 2 on-campus clinical intensives (3 on-campus clinical intensives starting 2023)

Upon graduation, students will be eligible to sit for the Family Nurse Practitioner and Emergency Nurse Practitioner exams for board certification. Graduates must hold certification as a Family Nurse Practitioner in order to apply and become eligible for the Emergency Nurse Practitioner board certification exam offered by the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board. Career opportunities for FNP/ENP program graduates include a variety of clinical settings, such as primary care offices, urgent care clinics, emergency department fast-track areas, main emergency departments, and trauma resuscitation units.

Students in the Emergency NP specialty are required to attend NP Clinical Skills Intensives (CSI) provided by the USA Simulation Program.  These on-campus Clinical Skills Intensives include basic skills workshops, simulation labs, and clinical exams. For all mandatory visits, students will only attend ONE of the session dates listed and will have an opportunity to request a preferred date once notified by the USA Simulation department. Dates will be released by the USA Simulation Department three months prior to the scheduled sessions. Please note the dates are for Clinical Skills Intensives only. The track coordinator may provide orientation dates, which are separate from CSI and Simulation.

Current students who began clinicals in Fall 2023 will complete a three-phase Clinical Skills Intensive. Two phases remain for students on this plan of study.

Phase 2: The second mandatory CSI will cover emergency skills just prior to summer semester enrolled in NU 585/586.

ENP Phase 2 Clinical Skills Intensive Dates 2024:   See USA Simulation Program

PHASE 3: The third mandatory CSI will be during the fall semester when the student is enrolled in the last clinical course NU 587/588.

Clinical Skills Intensive Check-Off (Dual Role Phase 3) Dates 2024:  See USA Simulation Program

Current students beginning clinicals in Fall 2024 and later will complete a two-phase Clinical Skills Intensive.

Phase 1: Beginning in 2024, the first mandatory CSI will occur during the Spring while the student is enrolled in clinical course NU 583/584.

Dual FNP/ENP Phase 1 Clinical Skills Intensive Dates 2025: See USA Simulation Program

Phase 2: The second mandatory CSI will be during the fall semester when the student is enrolled in the last clinical course NU 587/588.

Clinical Skills Intensive Check-Off (Phase 2) Dates 2024:  See USA Simulation Program

BSN-DNP students complete all support, MSN specialty, DNP Core, DNP Project Planning & Development and Residency courses for a total of 69 credit hours. The following DNP core courses are required for the completion of the MSN degree: NU 607, NU 608, NU 610, and NU 613.  Both MSN and DNP degrees must be completed within seven years. The MSN portion must be completed within the first five years of the program.

MSN-DNP students adding a new specialty must complete the support courses if they have not previously completed the courses in their MSN program.  They must complete the specialty courses and support courses, if needed, to complete the Post-Graduate Certificate. The DNP core, DNP Project Planning & Development, and Residency courses are required for completion of the DNP degree.  This program is a total of 72 or 81 credit hours, if support courses are needed. The Post-Graduate Certificate must be completed within two calendar years. The student has seven years to complete both the Post-Graduate Certificate and DNP degree for this program.

MSN-DNP for Advanced Practice Roles must only complete the DNP core, DNP Project Planning & Development, and Residency courses to complete the DNP degree. This is a total of 36 credit hours. The student has a total of five years to complete the degree requirements.

Curriculum
Support Courses
NU 518 - Advanced Nursing Assessment 3 credit hours
NU 545 - Physio-pathological Basis of Advanced Nursing 3 credit hours
NU 578 - Pharmacology for Advanced Practice Nurses 3 credit hours
FNP/ENP Specialty Courses
NU 580 – Health Promotion/Disease Prevention & Issues for FNP/ENP 2 credit hours
NU 581 – Family/Emergency NP I 5 credit hours
NU 582 – Family/Emergency NP Practicum I – 120 Clinical Hours 2 credit hours
NU 583 – Family/Emergency NP II 5 credit hours
NU 584 – Family/Emergency NP Practicum II – 240 Clinical Hours 4 credit hours
NU 585 – Family/Emergency NP III 5 credit hours
NU 586 – Family/Emergency NP Practicum III – 240 Clinical Hours 4 credit hours
NU 587 – Family/Emergency NP IV 5 credit hours
NU 588 – Family/Emergency NP Practicum IV – 240 Clinical Hours 4 credit hours
DNP Core Courses
NU 607 - Scientific Underpinnings of Advanced Nursing Practice 3 credit hours
NU 608 - Evidence-Based Practice and Quality Improvement in Healthcare 3 credit hours
NU 610 - Healthcare Policy and Finance 3 credit hours
NU 613 - Organizational & Systems Leadership 3 credit hours
NU 611 - Translating Evidence Into Practice Systems 3 credit hours
NU 612 - Clinical Prevention and Population Health 3 credit hours
NU 615 - Quality Improvement and Outcomes Assessment 3 credit hours
NU 616 - Data Management & Decision Making in Complex Healthcare Systems 3 credit hours
Dual Role (Family NP/Emergency NP) DNP Project Planning & Development and Residency
NU 680 - Family/Emergency NP Project Planning and Development 3 credit hours
NU 681 - Family/Emergency NP Residency I 180 specialty clinical hours 3 credit hours
NU 682 - Family/Emergency NP Residency II 180 specialty clinical hours 3 credit hours
NU 683 - Family/Emergency NP Residency III 180 specialty clinical hours 3 credit hours

The University of South Alabama Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program provides the skills necessary for a rewarding career. Graduates are eligible and prepared to complete the appropriate national certification exam and apply for licensure to practice as an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN). It is the graduate’s responsibility to ensure the program meets the requirements to practice in their selected state or U.S. territory.

• DNP Admissions
• DNP Application
• Graduate Readmission