The Adult Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) option prepares nurses to become evidence-based and theory-guided advanced practice nurses providing quality care to acutely and critically ill patients, medical-surgical patients, and older adults or elderly patients, as well as to patients requiring palliative care services (chronic illness management and end-of-life care).

The College of Nursing is the birthplace of the Nurse Practitioner, advanced practice role. In 1965, Dr. Loretta Ford, faculty of the College of Nursing and Dr. Henry Silver, a faculty member from the School of Medicine envisioned that nurses could be educated to perform well child physical exams, and to diagnose and manage common acute and episodic health problems in children. The subsequent research revealed that the new role for nursing was well accepted by patients, their families, as well as our physician colleagues. Subsequent research over the last three decades has validated the public’s acceptance of this advance practice role, as well as quality and cost effective outcomes.

In its most recent report, U.S. News and World Reports ranked our Adult Nurse Practitioner (ANP) specialty number 8 in the nation.