A Nurse Practitioner's View

Why You Should Consider Becoming a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist Many registered nurses can tell you about the stress that comes with a profession where being overworked and under appreciated comes with the job. However, there is one nursing specialty where nurses report high levels of satisfaction with their jobs, their patients, and their salaries- Nurse Anesthesia. A Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist is a registered nurse who has completed his or her Masters of Science in Nursing degree specializing in anesthesia. Today, between sixty and seventy percent of anesthetics are given by Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists, according to the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists. Thanks to the high skill level required by the position, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists are highly independent, very well paid, and in demand all over the country. Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists say that the field requires a lot of upfront commitment to receive the training...

On this unofficial Facebook " Unfriend Day " I thought I'd take brief stock of the different social networking platforms geared to nurse practitioners. There are a plethora of sites out there with varying degrees of engagement & activity. This list below is by no means meant to be exhaustive, it is just a sample of what I have come across: Clinician 1 NPs 2 NPs FaceBook (the many pages dedicated to different advanced practice nursing groups) LinkedIn (NP groups) Advance for NPs & PAs The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (has a networking site that is difficult to find) The ENP Network Many NPs on Twitter Allnurses NP Central Listserv NP blogs These sites are primarily geared to the NP with the hopes of networking with fellow NPs . I have personally been a part of every one of these sites - more so as a lurker - to see what my NP colleagues are talking about and discussing. It's rare that I feel compelled enough to comment about an issue (well, I...

The Pros and Cons of Legal Nurse Consulting I’ve spent years pursuing different avenues in the health care industry. I spent my high school years studying to become a CAN, I was at one point a EMT, and I eventually turned to alternative practices like massage therapy, herbs and general fitness and nutrition. Not long ago, though, I heard a term that was relatively new to me – legal nurse consulting. My aunt told me about her pursuit of a legal nurse consulting certification. Her goal was to pass the certification exam and open her own business, partnering with lawyers around the country to help them understand medical charts and the medical profession as a whole. Sounds great, right? I’m wondering if it really is. I urge anyone who is considering legal nurse consulting to consider the pros and cons. While it is certainly an admiral and profitable career path, it may limit your future choices. First of all, legal nurse consulting is not a get-rich-quick solution to your problems. If you...

CareFirst Insurer Expands Role of Nurse Practitioners, IOM Recommends Same Last week, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, an insurer in Baltimore, Maryland, announced that it would enable nurse practitioners to serve as primary-care providers in Maryland, Northern Virginia, and the D.C. area. In response to both the physician shortage, which is expected to take a turn for the worse in the coming years, and to the health care reform law, which will produce an huge spike in insured patients by 2014, CareFirst made the decision to grant more authority to nurse practitioners. As quoted in a recent FierceHealthCare article , CareFirst Senior Vice President for Networks Management Bruce Edwards noted: "With these developments ahead and an existing need to expand access to these services, allowing nurse practitioners to practice independently as primary-care providers is a logical move to serve our members better." The CareFirst decision to rec...

Just wanted to update anyone following me as I am finishing up the DNP (graduation is May 2011!) The work is intense. Trying to juggle school, work and family life, is a challenge. However I know that it is already worth it. My perspective on my practice has changed for the better and I now incorporate evidence-based practice and culturally competent care in all of my interactions. My group of four are knee deep into the data analysis/synthesis of our systematic review. The statistical portion is mind numbing after looking at all of these clinical trials and trying to synthesize them into something that will make sense. We are also incorporating non randomized controlled trials (RCTs) into our write up which brings additional challenges in answering our clinical question (focused on diabetes and group medical visits). We have been busy reading and re-reading clinical studies, crunching numbers, e-mailing study authors (many who don't actually write back to you), making forest plot...