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. Lisa Griggs-Stapleton is Core Occupational Therapy Faculty and the Doctoral Capstone Coordinator at University of St. Augustine – Dallas. She is a native Texan and has worked in pediatrics, in-patient rehab, geriatric and pediatric home health and population health management as well as clinical management. She holds a Master of Arts in psychology from Catholic University of America, a Master of Occupational Therapy from University of New Mexico and most recently earned a PhD in Occupational Therapy from Texas Woman’s University. She has presented at state and national conferences and her research interests include creativity in teaching, ADHD and improving health care using large data.
