Terri Schmitt PhD, APRN, FNP-BC, FAANP, Executive Director, NPACE
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NPACE Notes: November Newsletter!
From the Director National NP Week and Gratitude NovemberBy: Terri Schmitt PhD, APRN, FNP-BC, FAANPExecutive Director, NPACE
National NP Week and Gratitude November
By: Terri Schmitt PhD, APRN, FNP-BC, FAANP
Executive Director, NPACE
November 12th through the 18th, 2023 is National Nurse Practitioner Week. Interestingly, the month of November is also gratitude month. Gratitude for this profession and the people who choose it runs deep for me. The week signifies so much for me, as the profession has grown and changed in my 22+ years as a member.
NPACE will be recognizing NP Week and Veteran’s Day in-person with our attendees in Phoenix, Arizona, we will also celebrate with every single NP organization, state association, and individual practitioner across the country in recognition of the hard work of nurse practitioners to improve health outcomes of individuals and communities across this nation. My own NP provider has been a welcome and knowledgeable source of healthcare for myself and my children over the years. In reflecting on the NP profession and my gratitude towards it. Here are the things I would say about being an NP:
- It has never been a leisurely ride.
- There is always more to do.
- Means meeting the most incredible people who are peers, leaders, mentors, and even my patients. These are the human connections I would never trade.
- As NPs, we continue to fight some of the same battles, but with better knowledge and evidence behind our practice, that we have been fighting for decades.
- I am grateful for all the places my education has taken me.
- I am grateful for the frontline NP faculty who are helping teach and guide new students in an ever-demanding profession.
- As an NP I cannot do everything nor have it all, but I have had to learn to say ‘no’ and practice self-care. Work has forced me to do this, and it is a difficult, but a much-needed lesson.
- Healthcare in general is a difficult and traumatic place to be but needed more than ever. Healthcare work is human-to-human work at its core.
- All healthcare professionals must work as a team.
- Learning never stops. Never.
Feel free to share your thoughts on being an NP with us through one of our social media channels, a DM, an email, or at an in-person event. NPACE celebrates NP week with you, we are grateful for every one of you. 
Terri Schmitt PhD, APRN, FNP-BC, FAANP,
Executive Director, NPACE
https://www.npace.org/