Half of Doctors Practice With NPs, PAs
Posted almost 14 years ago by Stanley F Whittaker
By Shalmali Pal, Contributing Editor, MedPage Today
Published: August 23, 2011
Nearly half of all physicians work with ancillary providers such as nurse practitioners or physician assistants, most commonly in large primary care practices and multispecialty groups, according to a new government report.
In 2009, 49.1% of U.S. physicians worked alongside nurse practitioners (NPs), physician assistants (PAs), and certified nurse midwives (CNMs). These doctors tended to be in larger practices, be younger, and generate a significant amount of revenue from Medicaid patients, according to a data brief written by researchers at the National Center for Health Statistics.
"The expansion of health insurance coverage, as well as the aging baby-boomer population, are predicted to cause a surge in demand for healthcare services in the coming years," wrote Melissa Park, MPH, and colleagues.
"Examining the current employment of NPs, CNMs, and PAs in physicians' offices is important in order to prepare for the future," they added.