Patient-Centered Medical Home - Essay Example

? Nursing Nursing A nurse practitioner is recognized as a registered nurse who has concluded the graduate-level education (Buppert, 2003). The nurse practitioners mainly handle mental and physical conditions by cross examining the patient. In addition, the nurse practitioners are permitted to diagnose a disease and provide treatment to the patient by prescribing medication. The nurse practitioners are also active in most of the patient advocacy actions. After the nurse practitioners complete their education, they are normally certified by various organizations depending on their nation state (Buppert, 2003). This paper will explain the shadowing experience of a nurse practitioner in a primary care physician’s office. The care provided by nurse practitioners significantly varies from one country to another. The Pearson Report contains all the duties that are supposed to be performed by nurse practitioners. Further analysis also proves that nurse practitioners can perform several duties in different institutions including health centers, nursing homes, unique clinics and learning institutions (Buppert, 2003). Furthermore, nurse practitioners are licensed after completing the practitioner’s program. Advancements in the discipline of nursing began in the mid-20th century. Research asserts that most of the changes in the field of nursing were implemented in this era. The office of primary care was set up in order to improve the accessibility, availability and value of care to individuals of a certain area. The primary care offices are liable for supplying primary care providers in various countries. In most states, the primary care unit has established a work plan that is designed to augment the supply of primary care physicians in order to meet the health care requirements. This work plan also entails the training programs which are employed in primary care, the primary care shadowing program and elective chances in primary care. The work plan also deals with the development of incentives for primary care. Such incentives include increasing the salaries of the primary care specialists and loan repayment factors (Buppert, 2003). Most health care companies prefer nurse practitioners who have significant physician assistant shadowing. Most health care experts usually undergo a shadowing experience which involves primary care. According to statistics in different countries, majority of patients originate from low and middle income populations. For example, in South Africa, most of the patients originate from the middle-class individuals; therefore, the primary care centers in such regions employ many health care professionals (Buppert, 2003). In the past, health care students mostly participated in various projects, which were considered as voluntary actions (Buppert, 2003). These projects were executed because the profession of nursing practitioners is regulated by the country. In the recent past, it was reported that there is a shortage of primary care physicians in most of the health centers globally. In fact, most individuals developed the idea of substituting the primary care providers with nurse practitioners. To some extent, the nurses are able to act as substitutes for primary care providers since, they are quite learned. The primary care givers are responsible for the provision of several functions in health care. Some of the tasks performed by the primary care givers include; accessing the medical needs of the patients and comprehensive care of patients. Primary care physicians account to around 50% of the annual office visits that are made by physicians (Wexler, 2010). In fact, the primary care physicians are the only individuals who are able to provide proper health care that addresses a majority of the patients. This form of care has substantially yielded sustained partnership within community members and patients. Utilization of the primary care services has also reduced mortality and morbidity rates. These factors prove that primary care services operate on equitable distribution of funds as compared to other specialized care centers. According to the problems addressed by primary care givers, nurse practitioners cannot provide the similar care to patients because they are trained differently. In this case, the nurse practitioners do not have the capability to provide better and refined services to the patients (Buppert, 2003). The shadowing program enables health students to have a better view of health care roles that are executed by both physicians and nurses. The shadowing programs have a significant impact on the range of skills required in a hospital setting. Some of the skills that are improved through the shadowing procedure include management, budgeting, therapy, pharmacy, information technology and accounting roles in a hospital setup (Buppert, 2003). Most of the physicians who have a shadowing experience in the medical field can easily get job opportunities. Further analysis depicts that nurse practitioners are not able to handle the tasks done by primary care providers, however; there are several instances whereby these nurse practitioners are employed in primary care institutions. Nowadays, primary care programs comprise of nurse practitioners, nutritionists, physicians and other social workers (Buppert, 2003). In this form of setting, the primary unit delivers its services to approximately 8,000 patients daily. The main goal in this providence firm entails the provision of high-quality medical services. There are various articles that have been edited regarding primary care physician workforce issues. These articles point out that the number of nurse practitioners who are joining primary care has declined rapidly. Furthermore, nurse practitioners who join primary care institutions usually spend a maximum period of three years. Nurse practitioners utilize only 30% of their career in primary care. They utilize the rest of their career life working as family physicians (Wexler, 2010). Primary care physicians present various benefits to patients and society at large. However, the contemporary predicament of the primary care physician workforce is the need to take care for patients who have increasing chronic care needs that demand close attention. The solution can be approached in a team-based manner, which includes nurse practitioners, primary care physicians and others staff members working together at the patient-centered medical home. The patient-centered medical home idea is considered as the focal point of the redesign of primary medical care (Wexler, 2010). Most primary care homes require individuals with PA-C (Physician Assistant-Certified) shadowing. A physician assistant (PA) is described as a health expert licensed by the country in order to apply the study of medicine under the supervision of a physician (Buppert, 2003). These physician assistants are responsible for disease diagnosis, lab tests, assistance in surgery and developing treatment plans among others. According to most jurisdictions, the supervising physician must be present when seeing patients the physician assistant is treating. In the United States, nurse practitioners and physician assistants perform similar roles (Wexler, 2010). However, the training of physical assistants is intense because they undergo the curriculum of medical schools. On the other hand, nurse practitioners are trained in one specialty. It is also clear that several nurse practitioners are in the pursuit of other independent practices. This is because most nurse practitioners are uncomfortable working under a primary care physician. In addition, the nurses do not feel the need to be tied to one physician. In conclusion, the information contained in this paper clearly proves that nurse practitioners are not contented working in a primary care physician office. Apart from the fact that physicians are more learned, the nurse practitioners and the physicians perform similar roles in the health centers. In 1965, the first nurse practitioner program was implemented by Loretta Ford and Henry Silver at the University of Colorado. This program commenced as a non-degree certificate program. According to this program, nurse practitioners were taught under the nursing model. In addition, they were viewed as advanced practice nurses who are trained in order to provide high-quality services. In most health care teams, the physicians lead the nurse practitioners as team members in management of health incidents (Wexler, 2010). References Buppert, C. (2003). Nurse practitioner’s business practice and legal guide. New York: Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Wexler, R. (2010). The primary care shortage, nurse practitioners, and the patient-centered medical home. American Medical Association Journal of Ethics. Retrieved from http://virtualmentor.ama-assn.org/2010/01/pfor1-1001.html Read More