In the past week, we shared the news that the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and the American College of Nurse Practitioners plan to merge. With 28 Facebook ''likes'' and many ''shares,'' it seems NPs support the decision. On our blog post readers are responding with positive comments, too. Cathy said, ''It's about time. This was so ...

If you're not following us on Facebook, ''like'' us and start sharing in the conversations! If you are, keep following and spread the word! This week, we posted the article ''Organizing and Investing to Expand Primary Care Availability with Nurse Practitioners'' by Peter J. Levin and Rick Bateman from Journal of Community Health to our ...

We have all been to see a healthcare provider with a checklist of things we wish to accomplish during a visit. Isn't that why we go? Time management skills in medicine are essential. As providers, we have to find a nice balance that gives patients our undivided attention yet maintains efficiency and allows us to be productive. My goal in time ...

This is a great time to be a nurse practitioner! There are so many opportunities out there, I feel like a kid in a candy store at times. But several months ago -- before landing my job in corrections  -- I did not feel this way. The reason was purely my fault; I was declining opportunities, waiting for a specific position at a former ...

If you're interested in starting your own practice but have no idea where to start, check out this free phone seminar. NP practice owner and business consultant Barbara Phillips will be hosting a seminar ''Getting Started in Your OWN Practice'' this Sunday (April 25) at 8 pm Eastern time. Register in advance online, and then call in for the free ...

This week we are testing an integrated billing system to use with our EMR. Last week I had the opportunity to view three EMR and billing systems. I felt like Goldilocks and the three bears: One was way too expensive and required little effort, one was so complicated I was lost on the log in page, and the third was ''just right'' -- integrated ...

It has been a very busy fall for ECFC. In addition to general patient care and all the day-to-day administrative issues, we are faced with another task. The state of MN has mandated that all recipients of state-sponsored health insurance have access to and are members of a state-certified Health Care Home. Eagan Child and Family Care is one of ...

This past month we have been working toward dragging our office into the 21st century. As I have mentioned in the past, the state of Minnesota required all healthcare providers to have electronic billing by July 15, 2009. In addition, EMR is an essential component to healthcare home designation. Hence, July and August have been somewhat more ...

Should you open a practice? If so, what kind? During these unstable economic times it is difficult to decide if now is the time to take the risk and open your own clinic. A stable job with a guaranteed hourly wage is tempting. Even if it means you are working for someone else and have to punch a time-card. Still, in the back of your mind you ...

I spent the morning going through the submissions to the 2009 NP Entrepreneur of the Year competition. I was struck by how many of the entries are from very new practices: Just over a quarter are a year old or newer.Of course, we have a special judging category for new practices, which encouraged new owners to enter, so our submissions might not ...