Although it’s not a term most people are used to hearing, it’s becoming more and more common as patients choose to see professionals with advanced degrees, such as physician assistants and nurse practitioners, rather than doctors.
Their presence at doctor’s offices has increased as a result of the physician shortage, rising health care demand, and an increase in graduates with advanced degrees.
Advanced Providers’ Effects on Patients
What does that imply for patients, though?
In primary care settings, data demonstrate that patients’ health results are comparable regardless of whether they visit a doctor, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner; however, in other settings, such as emergency rooms and specialized care, the situation is still unclear.
According to experts, more study and conversations are required as the number of providers with advanced degrees in healthcare institutions rises in order to identify the settings and situations in which their abilities will be most useful.
The most important thing is to assign providers to the locations where they’re needed and likely to be most effective, according to Dr. Anupam B. Jena, professor at Harvard Medical School and co-author of the new book, The Medicine That Doesn’t Need an MD.
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COVID’s Influence: Accelerating Medical Personnel Transition
Health experts claim that this transition to other sorts of medical personnel started roughly 20 years ago and was only enhanced by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Perri Morgan, a physician assistant and professor of family medicine and community health at Duke University School of Medicine, said, “It’s becoming more and more accepted that physician assistants and nurse practitioners are highly qualified professionals who can take on a lot of the work that’s traditionally done by physicians.”
In its 2023 study, US News & World study puts physician assistant and nurse practitioner as the top two careers in the healthcare industry, respectively, after taking into account factors including pay, stress levels, and employment growth.
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