Check out the January 31-February 7, 2005 issue of U.S. News and World Report for a special report on health care-particularly the growing role of advanced practice RNs (APRNs). Featuring a nurse on the cover and the cover line "Who Needs Doctors?" the issue offers an extremely positive view of the work that APRNs perform and details how they and others are increasingly providing care formerly offered only by physicians.

The coverage has drawn criticism from the Center for Nursing Advocacy, however. While acknowledging the issue's glowing view of APRNs, the Center argues that the report largely ignores or dismisses the work done by the vast majority of RNs. "In this sense, the report may actually reinforce regressive attitudes: Nurses matter to the extent they can act like physicians."

For a fee, you can read individual stories from the U.S. News issue online by visiting the magazine's Web site at http://www.usnews.com/usnews/issue/050131. For full remarks from the Center for Nursing Advocacy, go to http://www.nursingadvocacy.org.