NPs & PAs Are Talking – June 18, 2012
On Facebook
this week, we shared some photos
from the AAPA IMPACT 2012 conference in Toronto. Our fans loved to "meet" NP
&PA Student Blog blogger Caroline
Pilgrim, a first-time AAPA conference attendee. Caroline wrote about her
experience at the conference and shared some of her own great photos in her blog
post this week. Did you attend the conference? Let us know what you think
and share some of your own great photos in the comments below!
ADVANCE for NPs & PAs will also be attending the
American Academy of Nurse Practitioners conference in Orlando, Florida this
week. If you're attending, stop by our booth and say hello! We hope to see you
there.
On Twitter,
we shared more great tweets from our followers! @lesiabby123 said, "OmG as soon as I become a nurse
practitioner I'm buying a beach house!!!!!!!!" We agree! A beach house would be delightful! @tanismoney: shared more exciting news: "I'm officially a board
certified physician assistant." Congratulations! We love to see NPs and PAs
succeed after years of hard work! @GenesisAviless said, "excited to be a future nurse
practitioner. It'd be amazing taking care of people and building relationships
as a career." Incredible goals! What achievements are you celebrating this
week? Let us know on our Twitter page!
Reader Kara asked an important
question on our LinkedIn page this week: "I
am curious what incentive is there for APRN's to obtain their DNP when there
isn't a pay incentive? I understand the need for teachers and I am trying to
understand the ‘need' to have our profession measure up to other professions
that hold doctorates, however, I think nursing is missing the boat. Why isn't a
bridge offered to further pursue the "medical" aspect of being a
Nurse Practitioner???"
Our readers weighed in. "I have asked the same questions to other nurse practitioners
and DNPs. I understand the need to have certain educational criteria but
nursing has never seemed to establish a basic criteria for even an RN license
that is universal. We have RNs with associate degrees and bachelor degrees. Now
we will have nurse practitioners with bachelors degrees or masters degrees or
doctorate degrees. States establish the legal require for RNs and APNs. How can
they establish a universal criteria for a doctorate degree when the nursing
profession as a whole cannot establish a basic criteria?" M. David R. said.
Dr. Debbie K. said, "Good Question! There are
numerous reasons to obtain a DNP. From my aspect, these are the reasons: 1.
Continuing eduction is necessary to remain competent in the field, so this
continuing ed might as well go towards promoting the APRN profession; 2.
quality of care improvement and this degree continued to help me think outside
the ‘dots'; 3. Personal and professional goal; 4. it has helped me gain respect
in the health care community -‘opening doors' by other colleagues and patients
5. APRN's must continue to remain at the ‘table' in health care in decision
making, policy development and to not become ‘dinosaur' in some health care
fields. The money will follow and the medical aspect will also develop in your
DNP field as we treat the ‘whole patient'. It is important to ‘pick' the
correct program for many reasons and look at your professional goals five plus
years down the road as you begin the DNP journey. Enjoy the journey and you
will be so pleased you took this trip!" What do you think? Let us know
by commenting on the LinkedIn
thread!
On our website
this week, care settings were discussed in the article NPs
& PAs Are Headed to Hospital Settings. Reader Debra commented, "Easier
said than done. You need to get the hospital bylaws consistent with the
hospitalist group's expectations in alignment. As a FNP hospitalist I struggle
to meet the group's expectations and remain within what the hospital bylaws
will allow. In all of my experience it is a matter of having the docs provide
back up and oversight in a way that enhances their productivity. Signing off on
your H and Ps, orders, and discharge summaries are not the way to do this. We
need a better way for them to follow after us and still be able to equitably
bill for both our services. Otherwise it it is not worth it to them to have to
do what the hospital requires for oversight. I lost one job (my first as a
hospitalist, no service or patient care issues) because the hospital had a
structure that was very costly to provide me with backup." Do you work in a hospital? What has your experience
been?
Comments are reposted here verbatim, without editing. We
love to get feedback from our readers. If you're not chatting with us on Facebook, Twitter
and LinkedIn, "like", "follow" and "connect"
with us and start sharing in the conversations! If you are, keep following and
spread the word.
If there's something you think we should be discussing, let
us know. As always, thanks for following!