Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Clinical Nurse Specialist Program (Adult CNS) (MSN)

The Adult-Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) program prepares graduates as clinical experts who provide, supervise, and improve care for adult and older adult patient populations within the expanded scope of advanced nursing practice.  The intention of the CNS Program is to supply a workforce of specialty trained and certified advanced practice nurses who will engage their skills in both direct and indirect care to enhance patient outcomes.

There are three domains of CNS practice, known as the three “spheres of impact.”  These spheres include the patient/family (direct care), nurses/nursing practice (direct care), and organization/system (indirect care). The CNS interacts with the health delivery team in care delivery, staff development, and research in order to promote evidence-based care in the select population.  The CNS drives practice changes on a systems level with the intention of achieving the best patient outcomes.

The CNS program provides students with hospital, long term care facilities, and education-based clinical experiences designed to prepare students to work with adult populations ranging from young-old to old-elderly (600 clinical hours).  Upon graduation, CNS graduates are eligible to take the Adult-Gerontology CNS certification examination offered by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) and by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN).