Nurse Practitioners: Growing Need, Responsibilities, and Practices

     With the growing primary care physician shortage discussed in last week’s articles, there is a debate emerging about whether nurse practitioners can and should step in to ease the pains of the primary care physician shortage. In part one of this two-part blog, we discussed the possible concerns that could arise with an increased role for nurse practitioners. In part two, we will be discussing ways in which nurse practitioners can be used to help patients and ease the physician shortage.

     The current shortage of primary care physicians has created an increased demand for physician’s assistants and nurse practitioners, which will only increase as the shortage continues to grow. Along with the growing demand for additional nurse practitioners and the shortage of primary care physicians, there have been a number of states which have enacted legislation which has expanded the roles of the nurse practitioners to nearly 80% of the average primary care physician. In addition, nearly half of all U.S. states have also created legislation allowing nurse practitioners to practice independently, without a supervisory primary care physician. With far fewer years of schooling and far less debt, nurse practitioners are currently entering the health care system at a rate of nearly five times that of primary care physicians.

     To recap, there are three major advantages of having nurse practitioners step in to help ease the primary care physician shortage. First, they are able to accomplish eighty percent of what primary care physicians can which means many patients can have their clinical needs met without seeing a physician at all. Second, nurse practitioners are able to practice on their own in 22 states thus reducing the number of primary care physicians needed in those states. And finally, they are entering the work force much faster than primary care physicians which would allow them to impact the healthcare workforce faster than primary care physicians could and ease the pain of the shortage.

     The growing shortage of primary care physicians is sure to continue to drive the need for an increased number of nurse practitioners. After reading both sides of the argument, where do you stand on this issue?
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Belinda Bowman is Director of Business Development at Fidelis Partners.
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