The specialty prepares registered nurses to provide evidenced-based care to acutely and critically ill patients and their families in variou settings and across the continuum of acute care services.
The University of Maryland School of Nursing (UMSON) will launch a new Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) specialty in Adult-Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist (AGCNS) next summer, and Maranda Jackson-Parkin, PhD ’23, MS ’06, Cert ’06, RN, CRNP-BC, ACNP, CCNS, CCRN-K, CNE, assistant professor, will serve as the specialty director.
The specialty prepares registered nurses to provide evidenced-based care to acutely and critically ill patients and their families in the critical care, trauma, and emergency department settings and across the continuum of acute care services.
Previously, the DNP program offered a combined Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner/AGCNS specialty, but recent increases in required clinical education, specifically the expectation of 750 direct patient care hours, would have significantly lengthened the combined specialty, adding time and intensity for students.
In addition, the roles require distinct preparation to meet evolving national standards for advanced practice nursing, said Shannon Idzik, DNP '10, MS '03, CRNP, ANP-BC, FAANP, FAAN, professor and associate dean for the DNP program.
To maintain program quality, ensure alignment with role-specific competencies, and support timely degree completion, the advanced practice pathways will be offered as separate DNP specialties. This structure allows each program to provide focused, in-depth clinical and systems-level training while preparing graduates to excel in their chosen advanced practice role.