Advanced practice nursing in Finland: not-so-new roles for nurses

Background Finland introduced the 1st Advanced Practice Nursing (APN) role, Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS), around the turn of the century within hospital settings to respond to the increasing complexity and needs of healthcare [1]. The first Nurse Practitioner (NP) programs were launched in 2006. However, the integration of NP roles, especially NP posts, in social and healthcare services has been slow in Finland [2]. Although advanced practice nurses are not formally regulated in Finland, NP and CNS roles have been established and recognized in practice [3]. Twenty years after…