Nurse practitioner Jim Cheeks/The Tennessean

... gap. Nurse practitioners say they are prepared and competent to help. They are registered nurses trained in advanced nursing practices at the master's or doctoral level. An estimated 135,000 nurse practitioners work in the United States today, an ...

http://archive.wbir.com/news/article/124463/2/There-is-a-growing-movement-of-nurse-practitioners-breaking-out-to-start-independent-primary-care-practices