Shaping the future of district nursing through advanced nurse practitioners: a scoping review

BACKGROUND: The advanced nurse practitioner district nurse is a relatively new role in district nursing services in Northern Ireland. A solid evidence base is a prerequisite for district nurses, who need to be able to demonstrate their specific contributions to primary care and support the development of future advanced nursing roles within the specialty. AIMS: This scoping review aimed to gain a greater comprehension of the advanced nurse practitioner role, and its contribution to the district nursing service needs, by identifying and evaluating the existing evidence. METHODS: The search strategy was based on the population, concept and context framework. The primary search focused on CINAHL, Medline and Scopus. International, national and regional primary and secondary research was included. The keywords used for the literature search included: advanced nurse practitioner; advanced practice; community health nursing and district nursing. RESULTS: From 1790 identified records, 24 duplicates were removed and 1766 titles were screened, resulting in 13 studies included in the final scoping review following application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, date limits (2019-2023), and full-text eligibility screening. Three major themes emerged: role clarity; role preparation, development and implementation; and role value and support. The themes were inextricably related and linked to answering the research question and study objectives. CONCLUSIONS: The review identified a distinct lack of research on the role of the advanced nurse practitioner in district nursing practice, despite the comprehensive and broad search strategy. However, the evidence can be mapped in the context of local impact and within the district nursing service.