In classrooms and clinical sites across New Jersey, we are preparing a world-class generation of clinicians. As nurse educators, we provide the master’s- and doctoral-level education required for advanced practice nurses to earn licensure and certification to evaluate, diagnose and treat patients in this state. Yet after years of investment, we are watching our students — including those training to become nurse practitioners and nurse anesthesiologists — graduate and immediately cross state lines to practice.
They’re not leaving the profession. They’re leaving New Jersey.
Why? New Jersey’s outdated regulatory framework makes it far less attractive for advanced practice nurses to work here than in most of the nation. In March 2020, Gov. Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency and public health emergency through executive order. On April 1, 2020, a subsequent executive order temporarily suspended statutory provisions governing the scope of practice for health care professionals, including the requirement that advanced practice nurses maintain joint protocols with collaborating physicians. To read the full story.