AANP aims to bolster public, policymaker awareness of NPs via multimedia campaign

AUSTIN, Texas — Amid the 50th anniversary of the Nurse Practitioner degree program, the American Association of Nurse Practitioners has launched an integrated multimedia campaign to strengthen public and policymaker awareness of the critical role nurse practitioners play in delivering high-quality, affordable and accessible health care to millions of Americans.



"Nurse practitioners are leading the charge and growing the nation's access to patient-centered, accessible, high-quality health care," said AANP CEO Dave Hebert.  "We want every American to understand the commitment, education and clinical training these outstanding professionals have. AANP will continue to encourage legislation that removes barriers to nurse practitioner-delivered healthcare services."



The campaign, which will highlight the 50th anniversary of the NP degree program, will leverage media, broadcast television spots on "CNN New Day," "Fox and Friends," "CNBC Squawk Box," "Today," "Good Morning America," "Ellen," talk radio and in-person events.  AANP's television and radio ads will encourage consumers to visit NPFinder.com to locate an NP in their community.



"We are proud to recognize our 50 year track record as a profession. There is still work to be done to ensure patients have direct access to the full scope of care that NPs can provide. It's time to close the policy gap between the care that NPs are prepared to provide and the care that outdated state laws allow them to deliver," said AANP president Ken Miller.



Public relations and public affairs firm SevenTwenty Strategies, based in Washington, D.C, will manage the campaign in coordination with LAKPR in New York.



According to a recent AANP report, the number of nurse practitioners licensed in the United States has nearly doubled over the past 10 years, rising from approximately 106,000 in 2004 to more than 205,000 as of December 31, 2014. U.S. News and World Report ranked nurse practitioners as the second best overall job of 2015.