Nurse practitioners can provide the same quality of care as physicians, and states can help alleviate the physician shortage by increasing NPs' scope of care, according to a recent National Governors Association report.
The report reviewed and summarized several studies on NP-provided care. "Most studies showed that NP-provided care is comparable to physician-provided care on several outcome measures," the report said. Specifically, the report concluded that:
• NPs provided equal quality of care to patients as physicians, including patient satisfaction, time spent with patients and prescribing accuracy.
• NPs can successfully manage chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and obesity.
Thirty-four states currently require NPs to have some level of physician involvement in their care, according to the report. The report concluded if those states increase NPs' scope of care, it could help alleviate the country's looming physician shortage and not sacrifice the quality of care provided to patients.
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The report reviewed and summarized several studies on NP-provided care. "Most studies showed that NP-provided care is comparable to physician-provided care on several outcome measures," the report said. Specifically, the report concluded that:
• NPs provided equal quality of care to patients as physicians, including patient satisfaction, time spent with patients and prescribing accuracy.
• NPs can successfully manage chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and obesity.
Thirty-four states currently require NPs to have some level of physician involvement in their care, according to the report. The report concluded if those states increase NPs' scope of care, it could help alleviate the country's looming physician shortage and not sacrifice the quality of care provided to patients.
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