Program Coordinator/Contact
Mary Minton, Associate Dean of Graduate Nursing
Department of Graduate Nursing
Wagner Hall 217, Box 2275
605-688-4114
E-mail: SDSU.gradnursing@sdstate.edu
www.sdstate.edu/nurs/programs/graduate
Program Information
The D.N.P. program was established in 2009. The program was developed in response to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Position Statement on the Practice Doctorate in Nursing. The position statement supported moving the preparation of advanced practice nurses from the M.S. in Nursing to the Doctoral level by the year 2015.
The purpose of the D.N.P. program is to prepare Advanced Practice Nurses (APRNs) to transform clinical practice as expert clinicians and leaders with a special focus on rural and underserved populations.
In addition to delivering evidence-based direct patient care at an advanced practice level to individuals across the lifespan in primary care settings, graduates of the D.N.P. program will learn skills needed to produce and implement valuable evidence to guide practice and are prepared to work collaboratively with rural communities in an effort to reduce health disparities.
Program Outcomes
- To prepare graduates as clinicians and leaders with a special focus on rural and underserved populations.
- To prepare graduates to deliver evidence-based direct patient care to individuals across the lifespan in primary care settings.
- To prepare graduates to produce and implement scientific evidence to guide practice.
- To prepare graduates to work collaboratively with frontier, urban, and rural communities in an effort to reduce health disparities.
Student Learning Outcomes
At the completion of the program, the graduate will successfully demonstrate the following competencies:
- Analyze significant practice issues with the theoretical and scientific underpinnings of knowledge-based practice.
- Employ advanced clinical judgment to assess, design, deliver, and evaluate evidence-based care of individuals in complex health and illness situations.
- Apply a broad system perspective to design, implement, and evaluate culturally congruent policies and practices to improve care for a diverse population.
- Lead health care inter-professional and intra-professional teams to transform care.
- Initiate ethically sound practice changes to address complex interwoven organization, population, fiscal, and policy trends.
- Demonstrate proficiency in the use of information technology to improve health care within systems.
- Implement evidence-based clinical prevention and health promotion activities to improve the health of populations.
Accreditation, Certification, and Licensure
Accreditation
The Doctor of Nursing Practice at South Dakota State University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 530, Washington, DC 20036, 202-887-6791.
Licensure
Students must provide evidence of professional registration by submitting a copy of the most current RN license.
Course Delivery Format
Nursing courses are delivered face-to-face and enhanced with web-based instruction. Online course delivery is also offered for specified courses.
Facilities and Services
The College of Nursing provides world-class facilities and a variety of student services and programs for graduate student engagement.
The program is open to registered nurses with a Master’s Degree in nursing with CNP, CRNA, CNS, and CNM. The program is designed for part-time study (including summers), and requires 28-36 course credits. The program is delivered through an executive delivery model in Sioux Falls that includes online components.
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