Nurse Practitioners: A Commonsense Solution to the Primary Care Shortage

"States should lift scope-of-practice (SOP) restrictions on nurse practitioners (NPs) and hospital boards, and credentialing bodies should permit NPs to assume expanded roles in primary care settings, according to a new report from the American Enterprise Institute. These steps would significantly ease the worsening primary care shortage, at a time when millions of Americans have no access to primary care. 

"Physicians also need to understand that NPs provide quality healthcare to patients who need it. "NPs and physicians should work together to build relationships that allow for their respective roles and practices to evolve, respecting each other's strengths and ultimately leading to a workforce that is more responsive to communities' health needs," wrote Peter Buerhaus, PhD, FAAN, a healthcare economist and professor of nursing at Montana State University. Buerhaus presented his research and participated in a panel discussion at the American Enterprise Institute on October 15, 2018."

To read the full Medscape article, click here

To see AANP's State Practice Environment map, click here.

 Diabetics Cared for by NPs, PAs Do as Well as Those in Physicians' Care
"It is time to stop calling NPs and PAs 'midlevel' providers."

 According to the New England Journal of Medicine, "Medium-term outcomes in diabetes remain the same under nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs) as with physicians, suggests a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine." 

"Researchers compared clinical changes among some 370,000 Veterans Affairs patients with diabetes in almost 600 VA primary care facilities. All were observed for 2 years. Changes in glycated hemoglobin, systolic blood pressure, and low-density lipoprotein among those under the principal care of an NP or PA did not differ when compared to those under physician care.

"For example, when compared with physicians' care, average systolic BP in the second year of observation was 0.08 mm Hg lower with NPs and 0.02 mm Hg higher with PAs — differences with no clinical significance. The same held true with hemoglobin and lipoprotein measures.

"An editorialist, favoring different approaches to primary care, writes that "it is time to stop calling NPs and PAs 'midlevel' providers."

To view the NEJM article with links to the study, click here.

And for another article on the study from "Medscape," click here.

 Senator King Speaks on Senate Floor in Support of Expanding Base of Opioid Treatment Professionals:
"Nurse Practitioners are unsung heroes."

"Nurse practitioners deliver life-saving treatment services in the fight against opioid addiction, particularly in rural counties. I spoke on the Senate floor
to encourage my colleagues to amend a recent opioid bill to give nurse practitioners the authority to provide medically-assisted treatment to those suffering from addiction."

view video by clicking here


SAVE THE DATE
MNPA Annual Spring Conference 2019
April 24, 25, 26, 2019
Point Lookout, Lincolnville, Maine

AANP Live: 2019 Diabetes Virtual Conference
A Full Conference Experience From the Comfort of Your Home or Office!

                        

March 23, 2019 9:00am – 4:00pm (CST) Online

CE: 6 hours
This education activity is pending approval by the American Association of Nurse Practitioners of up to six contact hours of accredited education.

To register, click here.

New 
A Prescriber’s Guide to the New Medicare Part D Opioid Overutilization Policies for 2019

This MLN Matters Special Edition Article is intended for physicians and other prescribers who prescribe
opioid medications to patients with a Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit
To download and read this article, click here.

New

2019 Medicare Part D Opioid Policies: Information for Prescribers
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized new opioid policies for Medicare drug plans
starting on January 1, 2019. Providers are in the best position to identify and manage potential opioid
overutilization in the Medicare Part D population. The new policies include improved safety alerts when opioid
prescriptions are dispensed at the pharmacy and drug management programs for patients determined to be
at-risk for misuse or abuse of opioids or other frequently abused drugs.

To download and read the tip sheet, click here.

Are you interested in Integrative Healthcare?

 MNPA member Kathy Coleman, ANP is a member of the Integrative Wellness Council of Maine.  She welcome's participation in the council's work from other NPs. Please check out the website.  ContactTisha Bremner, council chair, t[email protected], or Meneah Haworth, [email protected] for more info.


http://integrativewellnessme.com/
The Integrative Wellness Council of Maine is a group of like-minded medical providers and holistic health practitioners who are joining together in an opportunity to network and create a platform for continued community support and education of the ways in which complementary and alternative therapies may help our patients, clients, and students lead healthy, well, and whole live.

We would love to see more APRNs involved with the Integrative Wellness Council of Maine!