Does education level influence the practice profile of advanced practice nursing?

Background: Advanced practice nursing is recognised globally as central to meeting this community need. Whilst there is increasing recognition that advanced practice nurses should be educated to at least a master degree level, there is scant evidence on the influence of higher education on the practice profile of advanced practice nursing. Aim: To investigate the relationship between level of education and domain practice scores of nurses in advanced practice roles. Methods: The validated Advanced Practice Nursing Role Delineation (APRD) tool was used to measure the practice profile of advanced practice nurses at different postgraduate education levels, across five domains of nursing practice activities. A cross-sectional electronic survey of nurses was used. Findings: APNs with higher degrees performed at a higher level across all five domains of the APRD tool compared to those who did not hold a higher degree. This was highly significant for the domains of Research and Leadership, followed by the Optimising Health Systems and Education domains, but not significant for the Direct Care domain. Discussion: Questions are often raised about the benefits of investing in nurses' education, particularly the need for a higher degree for advanced practice nurses. APNs with higher degrees have a different emphasis in their role activities than those without a higher degree. This difference could be significant given current global health challenges. Conclusion: Higher education changes the practice profile of APNs. Those with higher education are more likely to be involved in research and leadership with knowledge integration across all practice domains. 2020 Australian College of Nursing Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd.