The 50th state boasts a diverse population and nursing workforce. It also has a highly educated population of nurses. A full 12 percent of Hawaii's nurses have a master's degree; the national average is just 8 percent.
The vast majority of Hawaii's master's-prepared nurses are nurse practitioners (NPs) who provide primary care services to the state's medically underserved residents. But while Hawaii's nearly 1000 nurse practitioners are providing excellent care, healthcare experts say that state needs still more nurse practitioners. Like many other states, Hawaii is currently in the midst of a physician shortage, and only expects the demand for healthcare to increase as the state's residents age.
Clinical nurse specialists (CNSs) are also an important part of healthcare in Hawaii. Close to three percent of the state's nurses are licensed as clinical nurse specialists. They typically provide care to specialized patient populations in hospitals.
Other master's-prepared nurse specialists in Hawaii include certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) and certified nurse midwives (CNMs). NPs, CNSs, CRNAs and CNMs are considered advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) in Hawaii. To be eligible for licensure as an APRN in Hawaii, you must complete an MSN program and pass a national certification exam in your specialty. Advanced practice nurses who wish to prescribe medication must also complete additional pharmacology education.
MSN programs for Hawaii nurses include:
- Hawaii Pacific University. Hawaii Pacific strives to prepare its grads to practice in a transcultural environment. MSN students can attend full-time or part-time and choose from either the family nurse practitioner track or the clinical nurse specialist track. The school also offers an RN-to-MSN pathway for nurses who lack a bachelor's degree.
- University of Hawaii at Manoa. U of Hawaii offers a wide-range of MSN degrees, including nurse practitioner, nurse educator, nurse leader and clinical nurse specialist programs. It also offers a distance-learning MSN degree in advanced public health nursing. An RN-to-MS program is available for nurses who have a bachelor's degree in a field other than nursing.
