Category: Barton News Page 6

Shortages in rural health have long been a challenge for the healthcare profession — and one that has seen many proposed solutions over the years. Increasingly, nurse practitioners and physician assistants are answering the call. A Journal of Rural Health review shows that, overall, “PAs provide cost-efficient and supplemental medical […]

Congratulations! You’ve graduated as a nurse practitioner or physician assistant. Friends and family are proud, and they’ve applauded as you’ve stepped across the stage in a cap and gown. You’re ready to take on what’s next. You want to put your degree to good use, but you’re not sure where […]

I am apparently in the minority. According to the 2015 AAPA salary report, 51.7 percent of physician assistants work in an urban setting of more than 1 million people. Further, 12.4 percent work in an area where the closest town has a population of 20,000 people or less. I am […]

It isn’t always easy for patients to trust their doctors. We’ve heard that helping patients feel comfortable enough to open up about their lifestyle choices is a real challenge, especially now that tensions at the doctor’s office seem to have reached an all-time high. A 2015 study from Zocdoc confirms […]

Let me guess. You’re a nurse practitioner (NP) with years of experience and a master’s degree. You’ve heard the hype about this new degree, the doctor of nursing practice (DNP), but you already provide excellent patient care, so why do you need more education? Research even backs you up; for […]

As a clinician, you’re comfortable with the healthcare system. Because you go to work every day in a hospital, clinic, or other care center, you’re used to the environment. It’s easy to forget that some patients are afraid of hospitals and that many people spend significant time wallowing in illness […]

Fifteen years ago, I went to prison — voluntarily. Jobs were in short supply after I graduated from my NP program, so I took a locum tenens position in our state prison system. Like most clinicians, I had never heard of correctional medicine, nor given much thought to how prisoners […]

Family medicine has always been the backbone of healthcare. The very first physicians were generalists, able to work across fields while keeping compassion as their main focus. But things have changed in the last few decades. At many medical schools, this primary care specialty is considered outdated or unchallenging — […]

Anyone who has worked long hours understands the feeling of burnout: When you get home, all you want to do is relax, get some sleep, and wake up refreshed tomorrow. But what happens when the consequences are more than just a sleepy morning meeting or a missed deadline? When the […]

In our changing healthcare landscape, providers and patients are finding new, more modern ways to interact. In fact, there’s a growing market for on-demand access to services that don’t require patients to establish a pre-existing relationship with their care providers. According to “The Virtual Primary Healthcare Revolution: What Health Systems […]