Why Nurse Practitioners Are Fighting to Do Jobs They Were Trained For
from The Clarion-Ledger
Nurse practitioners in Mississippi have taken a lot of heat lately, after several columns were printed in The Clarion-Ledger refuting our role to treat and manage patients. Most recently, a Flowood psychiatrist was quoted as saying, “Nurse practitioners are … in it, like most people, for the money.” He continues with “if the past is any indication, access to care in rural areas will be no better than what it is now.” He also believes that “quality of care is rooted in the amount of knowledge and training that one receives” and that nurse practitioners “have important roles and can be used in a primary care setting where budgetary constraints are cost-prohibitive for physician services.”
Disclaimer: The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
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This obstructionist argument from MDs/DOs is doomed as more and more states legalize the independent practice of APRNs. Their objections just don’t hold water, as the studies have shown. Here’s the thing they need to understand about APRN independent practice: the difference in practice hours simply means that APRNs tackle the typical daily grind of health care whether in primary care or a specialty area while the MDs/DOs serve as the experts for complicated cases. They will just have to trust that we fully understand our scope of practice, our own individual limitations and will know when to ask for a consultation. It has nothing to do with income; it has nothing to do with quality of care. End of story.