Racial and Ethnic Composition of Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Faculty and Students in the United States

Abstract

Background: Neonatal nurse practitioners have a strong presence in the neonatal intensive care unit and are primed to lead efforts to induce change related to health disparities. Underrepresented minority nurse practitioners offer valuable perspectives in the care of underrepresented minority patients. However, there remains a current racial and ethnic discordance between neonatal providers and patients. Efforts to eliminate health disparities must begin before nursing school. The current racial and ethnic composition of neonatal nurse practitioner faculty in comparison to students in the United States is unknown. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the racial and ethnic composition of neonatal nurse practitioner faculty and students in the United States and contrast this data with available data for the racial and ethnic composition of the neonatal intensive care unit patient population. Methods: This cross-sectional study used a nonexperimental survey to describe the racial and ethnic composition of neonatal nurse practitioner faculty and students in the United States. Results: There was no significant difference in the racial and ethnic composition between neonatal nurse practitioner faculty and students. There were significant differences for all race distributions between neonatal nurse practitioner students and neonatal intensive care unit admissions. Implications for Practice and Research: The discordance between neonatal nurse practitioner students and neonates in the neonatal intensive care unit is important in addressing disparities and begins before nursing school. Identification of barriers and strategies for recruitment and retention of underrepresented minority nursing students and faculty is needed. Video abstract available at: https://journals.lww.com/advancesinneonatalcare/pages/video.aspx?v=62