A Nurse Practitioner's View

I believe it is important to look back at the challenges and successes of the outgoing year to set goals and plan for the new year. I partly attribute this to my DNP program as we have been required to reflect on each semester and completed year of the program. To say that health care was a hot topic in 2010 certainly is an understatement. We witnessed the passing of historic legislation that will help shape how care will be delivered in the years to come. I am hopeful to see better coordinated and more efficient care with an emphasis on preventative services and screenings. I am hopeful that all of the members of the multidisciplinary team refine and hone their collaborative skills so that we may better communicate and work together to provide the best possible care to our patients. 2010 saw nurse practitioners thrust into the spotlight as one possible solution for the influx of newly insured patients coming into the system. The discussions have been interesting to follow and it is ap

The healthcare system of today is so complex yet so dysfunctional that I believe the time has come to educate and train the NP providers of tomorrow in a way that is reflective of that complexity. We have done a good job up to this point but need to bring that to the next level. Residency. I'm not necessarily referring to the typical residency training of physicians which takes place in hospitals but a residency-type of program in an out-patient setting (ironic that we use the term residency). We realize that healthcare is not exclusively delivered in hospitals. It takes place in independent providers offices, in community health centers, in mobile health vans, and in retail settings. It takes place in people's homes and places of employment. It takes place in many of the health decisions that we make on a daily basis. I found this NP residency program in Connecticut that claims to be the first NP residency in the US. The programs admits 4 NPs each year and trains them to ha

North Carolina Nurse Practitioner Fights for Change Pediatric nurse practitioner Sandy Tripp has decided to do something about the childhood obesity crisis. She is reaching out to health care providers, public school administrators, and politicians to try and initiate change in Beulaville, North Carolina. As part of her efforts, she has been giving presentations in local schools. Her slide show features pictures of acanthosis, clogged arteries, fatty liver disease, and Blount’s Disease. She tries to educate students and staff about nutrition and the importance of exercise. She is also trying to persuade schools to offer their students fewer hot dogs and French fries and more broccoli and carrots. She is working to get a la cart offerings and vending machines removed from schools completely. She’s even trying to recruit Jamie Oliver, the international go-to guy for changing menus in schools! Tripp already has one politician on board, North Carolina House Representative Stephen LaRoque,