Findings
The 15 NPs who were interviewed included eleven women
and four men, aged between 29–56 years. The NP models
included a range of health service specialties and contexts of
practice, including rural and remote community centers and tertiary care hospitals. Participants had all been authorized as
NPs relatively recently, ranging from three months prior to
the interview to three years. It is, however, important to
comment that almost all had practiced as advanced practice
nurses prior to the availability of legislated privileges and
authorization as NP. They represented a range of practice
locations ranging through remote rural, mental health, acute
services and primary health care. At the time of the study,
authorization as a NP in New Zealand and all but two states
in Australia required master’s level or equivalent. Further
information on qualifications will not be reported here to
avoid speculation on the identity of participants. The findings
from this research will be reported in terms of the three
practice domains that describe the core role of the NP. In
reporting these findings we will include narrative examples
that most effectively illustrate the specific practice domain.