Nurse practitioners and physician assistants are advanced healthcare practitioners with similar responsibilities, such as diagnosing illnesses and prescribing medications. However, their training and paths toward certification differ in significant ways. This blog post unpacks the key differences between NPs and PAs to help you determine which career path best aligns with your goals. What Is a Nurse Practitioner? A nurse practitioner (NP) is a licensed clinician who provides comprehensive healthcare to patients of all ages. An NP can work in virtually any healthcare setting, diagnosing patient conditions and prescribing medications. As of October 2022, nurse practitioners have full practice authority in 27 states, meaning that they can practice Read more
Dr. Karen Bakuzonis has an undergraduate degree in Health Information Management from Daemen College, a master’s degree in health administration from the Medical College of Virginia-Virginia Commonwealth University and a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Florida. Her work experience includes serving as a Department Director, Administrative Director, Consultant and Associate Professor.
Dr. Bakuzonis has worked in hospitals, nursing homes, large 600+ faculty group practice, management companies, community colleges, state colleges and a flagship University. She has taught in health information management, health care management, nursing and health informatics programs. Dr. Bakuzonis has taught at the college level for more than 20 years from certificate to graduate courses, online and on-campus and has developed more than 35 courses. As research faculty, she was the Co-Director of an External Quality Review Organization. She also serves on the Board of Directors for the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education. Dr. Bakuzonis joined the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences in 2018.
