Nurse Practitioner Role Acceptance in the Emergency Department : A Case Study

The Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MoHLTC) invested in a pilot project that introduced nurse practitioners (NPs) into emergency departments (EDs) in order to improve patient care. Since the launch of the project, there have been no documented studies exploring how the NP role has been accepted by others. Role acceptance is critical to NP integration and thus effectiveness of the role in achieving its desired outcomes. This study explored NP role acceptance in the ED as perceived by NPs, physicians and nurses. Case study approach was employed using semi-structured interviews, the researcher's field notes and publicly accessible documents. NP role acceptance was found to be influenced by participants' understanding of the initial impetus for the role, the role itself, their appreciation of value-added components of the role, NP-specific characteristics and professional relationships among NPs, physicians and nurses. Implications for policy, practice, education and research are explored.