AANP policy on improving Medicare patient access to needed diabetic shoes
One of the significant roles of Nurse Practitioners is to manage and deliver quality healthcare to patients. They aim to promote health and prevent diseases since they are significant primary care providers. They achieve this role in primary, acute, and specialized health care settings. Before licensure laws were modernized, one of the significant health care challenges was the shortage and reduced accessibility of primary care providers (Peterson, 2017). To overcome this, it was necessary to establish a policy that ensures direct access to nurse Practitioners in all states. The primary NP had the authority to assess patients, make a diagnosis, order and interpret diagnostic tests, and initiate therapies, including drug prescriptions (Peterson, 2017). In states where the modernized licensure laws were not being applied, access to health care was a challenge, and the cost of health care was overwhelming. The implementation of this policy was intended to improve health care by providing direct access to NPs.
The first step to implementing this policy was drafting laws such as the Nurse Practitioners Modernization Act and presented to the particular states where outdated licensure laws were still being used. Its implementation would ensure that NPs work independently from physicians, thereby improving access to care.
Since the implementation of the Act in several states, several beneficial health outcomes have increased. Granting NPs full practice authority has significantly minimized the cost of health care. Alegria (2020) confirms that states with restrictions on the scope of practice incur the highest healthcare cost. “In 2017, South Dakota adopted full practice authority partly because the state could save up to $70,000 annually” (Alegria, 2020). Regarding healthcare quality, there are no significant differences established between one provided by NPs and physicians (Kurtzman & Barnow, 2017).
References
Alegria, N. M. (2020). Effects of Full Practice Authority on Chronic Disease Outcomes and Costs.
Kurtzman, E. T., & Barnow, B. S. (2017). A comparison of nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and primary care physicians’ patterns of practice and quality of care in health centers. Medical care, 55(6), 615-622.
Peterson, M. E. (2017). Barriers to Practice and the Impact on Health Care: A Nurse Practitioner Focus. Journal of the advanced practitioner in oncology, 8(1), 74.
Related Posts:
- Assess leadership styles, traits, and practices as a nursing professional, establish the importance of effective interprofessional communication as a leader in nursing, and to explore the role of servant leadership in nursing practice
- Nursing Leadership 8: Leadership versus Management
- Nursing Leadership Competencies: Identify a problem area in a practice setting that you specifically want to address (e.g., practice, policy, population, education)
- Nursing leadership and management functions
- Nursing Leadership 11: Conflict Management Style
- Management and Leadership in nursing
- Nursing Leadership and Management Field Experience: CLABSI Prevention in the ICU Capstone Project Title
- Nursing Leadership 6: Leadership Power
- Nursing Leadership 9: Leadership Style
- Leadership Skills in Nursing Practice
- Telehealth impact in Health care organizations and Patient Safety
- Evolving Practice Of Nursing And Patient Care Delivery Models
- DNP 820 – 10 Strategic Points For The Prospectus, Proposal, And Direct Practice Improvement Project
- Role Development Of The Advanced Practice Nurse
- Patient safety and quality improvement capstone
- Clinical Journal Reflection as a psychiatric Nurse Practitioner
- Collaborative Decision Making Through Shared Governance
- Module 01 Written Assignment – 7 Step Decision Making Model
- Primary research in nursing care or processes
- NURS 6051N – The Role Of A Nurse Leader As A Knowledge Worker
