Despite being the seat of American politics, the District of Columbia has fewer family practice physicians (in proportion to the overall number of physicians) than the rest of the United States. Just four percent of DC's physicians specialize in family practice, versus 13 percent of all U.S. physicians. That discrepancy, paired with a strong demand for primary care, may increase demand for nurse practitioners. Currently, just over 900 NPs practice in D.C.
Nurse practitioners in Washington, D.C. have a strong degree of professional autonomy. A collaborative agreement with a physician is not required to diagnose and treat patients or to prescribe medicine.
The average annual salary of nurse practitioners in the District of Columbia is $98,000. The Nurse Practitioner Association of the District of Columbia is D.C.'s professional organization for NPs.
Top NP programs in the District of Columbia include:
- Georgetown University. Georgetown offers both online and on-campus NP programs. The online program enables students to complete their MSN degree in about 18 months. Students can select either the family nurse practitioner track or the women's health nurse practitioner track.
- Catholic University of America. Catholic University offers three MSN-level NP programs: adult-gerontological primary care nurse practitioner, family nurse practitioner and pediatric nurse practitioner (with an option to focus on primary care or primary and acute care). The school also offers a DNP program.
- Howard University. In addition to a traditional MSN-level family nurse practitioner program, Howard University gives practicing RNs with a BSN degree the option of enrolling in a "trial start" program. The "trial" program lets nurses take up to nine credits of the family nurse practitioner program before deciding whether or not to enroll in the NP program.
Accredited schools with NP programs in District Of Columbia:
