I've read many times throughout many forums on sdn of how nurse practitioners could threaten MD's as primary care providers.
Family medicine and Primary Care is in the toilet right now. These types of providers are in serious, serious demand and because of the shortage, and the lack of access to such providers, many people use the ER as their primary care clinic, which has obvious catastrophic fallouts. This is not the fault of the NP. Without NPs, primary care would be even more of a nightmare and the majority, if not all, practicing physicians (the real one's, not the SDN ones) agree that the NP role is critical right now and that NPs are not a hindrance to the profession. In rural area's, NPs are the ONLY access to family medicine for some people. The blame falls on the government. If anyone is ruining family care and primary care, it is the government. End of story.
Recently, I received a bill from my school's hall health which stated that the ARNP I saw is considered "Doctor". No disrespect to her, she was very nice and knew what she was doing, but it's just interesting to see that my school considers ARNP to equal Doctor.
In most states, the american bored of nursing dictates that only advance practice nurses who also hold a PhD can be addressed as "Doctor" in a clinical setting. Each state has specific provisions on this and generally, in most, if not all states, NPs are not supposed to address themselves as Doctors...but thats not always the case. I have heard other doctors introduce NPs as doctors knowing full well they are NPs. Ive heard NPs address themselves as doctors knowing full well they aren't. I have also heard doctors address med students as doctors knowing full well they are not, so it happens. And just for the record, lawyers are also considered doctors, PhD holders are considered doctors, pharmacist are considered doctors, etc. People in these professions, with these degrees. can be addressed as "Doctor"...in other words, MD/DO is not the only profession that retains the right to this title.
Furhtermoe, this could be a typo type issue. Did the NP address herself as "Doctor So and So" at the clinic or did she say that she was a NP? Perhaps the reason she is billed as "Doctor" has to do with the logisitcs of billing and nothing more. For example, at the hospital where I work, we have a surgical NP who frequently does the rounding and order writing/changing. She clearly idntiifes herself as a NP. However, when you dial her extension, it comes up Dr. Her Name Here. Just a stupid secretarial hospital typo/error.
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