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Inclusion of Psychiatric–Mental Health Advanced Practice Nurses in Federal Behavioral Workforce Planning

Published Online:13 Dec 2023https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.20230321

Abstract

Psychiatric–mental health (PMH) advanced practice nurses have the education, certification, and licensure to address the need for providers who can deliver the full scope of mental health services and thereby increase access to mental health care. Although the PMH nurse practitioner (PMHNP) segment of this workforce is rapidly growing, it has scant visibility in workforce planning and the evolving national behavioral health workforce database. An understanding of PMHNP characteristics and practice roles seems to be lacking. Addressing this limitation demands clear messaging around this workforce’s scope of practice and data indicating how PMHNP capabilities meet mental health treatment needs.