Career choices are difficult hence the continued investment in career guidance and consultancy by learning institutions. These professionals understand that the inability to determine the best career based on skills and affiliations can result in failure or lifetime regrets for not pursuing one’s dream. The debate on the best doctorate for nurses to pursue in advancing their education and career always resulted in the comparison of doctor of nursing practice (DNP) and doctor of psychology (Ph.D.).
Comparison
Before 2004, most of the nursing masters’ education focused on enhancing academic and research-intensive to improve the profession and service delivery (Ketefian & Redman, 2015). This mode of studying targeted to prepare nurses advancing their careers by adopting the scholastic skills and engage in researches to enhance the knowledge and skills in analytical, methodological, and theoretical approaches ("Comparison of DNP and PhD", 2018). Ph.D. programs enabled the nurses to acquire the above skills and engage in intense studies that enable transformation and advancement of the nursing profession and healthcare.
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DNP programs, on the other hand, focus on preparing the nurse leaders to employ evidence-based practice in enhancing competence in their patient care, executive roles, and policymaking (Redman, Pressler, Furspan & Potempa, 2015). Unlike Ph.D. programs that lead to a scholastic career path, DNP programs enable the nurses to apply or implement the learned researches and innovations to facilitate efficiency in the health care systems and health spectrum.
Choice
Beverly (2014) argues that the two doctorates are complementary in advancing the nursing and health provisions. Therefore, for all the differences and similarities, Beverly recommends the nurse to choose to advance their studies based on their intended career paths rather than claiming that DNP or Ph.D. is superior to the other (Beverly, 2014). However, based on the chosen career path and the continued call for nurses participating more in policymaking and advancing the healthcare services, pursuing a doctor of nursing practice is more suitable and practical in enhancing my career in nursing. The program enables gaining leadership skills, implementing the innovations or studies in improving the profession and healthcare delivery.
References
Beverly, C. (2014). Changing Health Care Environment: Getting Beyond the PhD versus DNP Discussion. Journal Of Professional Nursing , 30 (2), 101-102.
Comparison of DNP and PhD. (2018). Retrieved August 22, 2018, from https://nursing.yale.edu/academics/doctor-nursing-practice/comparison-dnp-and-phd
Ketefian, S., & Redman, R. (2015). A critical examination of developments in nursing doctoral education in the United States. Revista Latino-Americana De Enfermagem , 23 (3), 363-371.
Redman, R., Pressler, S., Furspan, P., & Potempa, K. (2015). Nurses in the United States with a practice doctorate: Implications for leading in the current context of health care. Nursing Outlook , 63 (2), 124-129.
