What are nurse practitioners?

Across the United States there are about 140,000 nurses with advanced training practice in a variety of settings including doctors’ offices, clinics and hospitals. They have been part of the medical field since 1965 when the University of Colorado offered a nurse practitioner program. Nurse practitioners (NPs) start with a bachelor’s degree in nursing and then complete a graduate, post-graduate or doctoral degree and additional clinical training in their specialties.

Nurse practitioners may work in a general practice area such as family medicine or adult health. Others choose to specialize in areas like gerontology (the care of the elderly), neonatal health, women’s health, pediatrics, oncology or emergency medicine.

I spoke with one of the allied health professionals on staff at Des Peres Hospital, Natalie Davis, RN, MSN, FNP-C, who is a Family Nurse Practitioner in Des Peres.  

“The regulations governing nurse practitioners vary from state to state,” said Davis. “But in general, nurse practitioners provide a number of health services,” including:

• Taking a patient’s medical history, performing a physical exam, and ordering laboratory and other diagnostic tests such as X-rays

• Diagnosing and treating diseases

• Prescribing medications.

Nurse practitioners in the doctor’s office

Davis noted that nurse practitioners work as an important part of the health care team and can help patients manage their health. In a physician’s office, a nurse practitioner works as an extension of the physician. The nurse practitioner may allow the physician’s office to offer same-day appointments for patients who are ill. Nurse practitioners also can provide ongoing care to patients.

For example, Davis works with an internal medicine physician and provides primary care services for patients age 16 and older, including general wellness services and disease management, and patient education.

According to the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, people who choose nurse practitioners as their primary care providers have fewer emergency room visits, shorter hospital stays and lower medication costs. Additionally the training for nurse practitioners emphasizes disease prevention, reduction of health risks and patient education.

Many patients find nurse practitioners to be a welcome addition to their health care team. If your physician’s office has a nurse practitioner on staff, you may want to consider them for your care.