How Nurse Practitioners are Filling the Gap and Saving People’s Lives and Money
Healthcare has undergone massive changes in the last 20 years. With two economic crashes wiping out many people’s savings, including doctors, and medical insurance premiums going through the roof by as much a 1,000% since 2014, many doctors have decided it’s no longer worth their while to make medicine their career. Therefore, many medical professionals have hung up their stethoscopes and have jumped into real estate and other ventures.
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), there will be a shortage of 31,000 doctors by the year 2025. As if this were not enough, MedPage Today reported that the number of medical students graduating will NOT be sufficient to fill the deficit. How does America provide healthcare for our aging population then? Nurse Practitioners.
Nurse Practitioners: Lower Cost Quality Care
Nurse practitioners (NPs) are advanced practiced registered nurses classified as mid-level practioners. Wikipedia states, an NP is trained to assess patient needs, order and interpret diagnostic and laboratory tests, diagnose illness and disease, prescribe medication and formulate treatment plans.
The Nurse Practitioner and Preventive Care
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the top two causes of death are heart attack and cancer. And, in the top 10, numbers five and seven are stroke and diabetes, respectively. These fours diseases are all preventable (with few exceptions); however, many people avoid regular checkups and screenings due to cost or lack of insurance.
An NP focuses on preventive medicine, not only saving lives, but also avoiding problems to begin with. All this for less than you would pay a physician. Moreover, if you were to use a nurse practitioner, who provides the same quality of comprehensive care as a doctor, you may not need a physician any time soon. You will avoid issues or catch them in the early stages where medication can thwart them.
Where healthcare law will go in the future is unknown. However, what we do know is that the use of nurse practioners will help to alleviate the doctor glut, ensure people get the care they need whether they have insurance or not, save people money and make medical services more personal and accessible. Have you looked into using an NP? If you haven’t, you should. You may find you’ve already done so and didn’t know the difference.
