What is the difference between a certified nurse and nurse practioner ?

I'm not sure what you mean by certified nurse because there are different types of certification for nursing. You can think of nurses are falling into 3 main types:

1. Licensed Practical Nurses, also called Licensed Vocational Nurses: these nurses study an extra year after high school and become licensed by the state they work in. These nurses take medical histories, record patient symptoms, weigh and measure patients. These nurses are often supervised by Registered Nurses and sometimes directly by doctors.


2. Registered Nurses: these nurses have a two-year, associates degree, or a four-year bachelor's degree. They must pass a national exam to get their license. These nurses administer some treatments, help patients manage their treatment plans, explain medical information and prevention strategies to patient, and coordinating care with the families of patients. Some registered nurses advance their careers by going into specialties--for example, certified registered nurse anesthetists, cardiology nurses, etc.


3. Nurse Practitioners: these nurses get a master's degree in addition to their bachelor's degrees in nursing. These nurses have more autonomy than any others--may diagnose and treat patients. This includes writing prescriptions, running medical tests, and providing basic care.

Hope this answers your question!

The don't mean the same necessarily. Although I will have my Masters soon, I have 2 certifications that have nothing to do with that, WCC (wound care certified) and OMS (Ostomy managment specialst). I am graduating with a masters in nursing education, so I plan on also obtaining my CNE (Certified Nurse Educator). They are all independent of each other and each require national exams and courses, as well as continuing education requirements. They add to your resume, let people know what your expertise's are, I was going to use the last sentence Bob to explain as well, but already had it covered!

Certification is an additional credential that is earned by a nurse typically after study, practice and an examination. One of the largest and best known certifying bodies is the American Nurses Credentialing Center. To become an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) such as a nurse practitioner you must be certified in your specialty, such as Family Nurse Practitioner but not all who are certified are nurse practitioners or APRNs. For example you can be certified in school nursing or public and community health as a registered nurse without being a nurse practitioner. Saying it differently, all nurse practitioners are certified but not all certified nurses are nurse practitioners.