Are Nurses an Answer to New Primary Care Needs?
Authors: Sandeep Jauhar, David Battinelli
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2014)

Editorials15 July 2014Are Nurses an Answer to New Primary Care Needs?Sandeep Jauhar, MD, PhD and David Battinelli, MDSandeep Jauhar, MD, PhDFrom Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, Hempstead, New York. and David Battinelli, MDFrom Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, Hempstead, New York.Author, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M14-1308 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail The United States has a widely acknowledged shortage of primary care physicians—fewer per capita, in fact, than any other industrialized nation (1). A recent survey (2) found that 16% of U.S. adults who need primary care have to wait a week or more to see a physician. A big reason for this scarcity is money. Primary care pays the least of all of the medical specialties, and interest in this profession is at a low among medical students and residents (3). Meanwhile, the need for primary care physicians is growing as baby boomers retire and the Patient Protection and Affordable ...References1. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Health data 2012: health care resources, physicians by categories. Accessed at http://stats.oecd.org on 6 June 2014. Google Scholar2. Schoen C, Osborn R, Squires D, Doty M, Pierson R, Applebaum S. New 2011 survey of patients with complex care needs in eleven countries finds that care is often poorly coordinated. Health Aff (Millwood). 2011;30:2437-48. [PMID: 22072063] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Schwartz MD. The US primary care workforce and graduate medical education policy [Editorial]. JAMA. 2012;308:2252-3. [PMID: 23212505] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Center for Workforce Studies, Association of American Medical Colleges. Recent studies and reports on physician shortages in the US. Washington, DC: Assoc of American Medical Colleges; 2012. Accessed at on www.aamc.org/download/100598/data/ 6 June 2014. Google Scholar5. McGlynn EA, Asch SM, Adams J, Keesey J, Hicks J, DeCristofaro A, et al. The quality of health care delivered to adults in the United States. N Engl J Med. 2003;348:2635-45. [PMID: 12826639] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. Yarnall KS, Pollak KI, Østbye T, Krause KM, Michener JL. Primary care: is there enough time for prevention? Am J Public Health. 2003;93:635-41. [PMID: 12660210] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar7. Shaw RJ, McDuffie JR, Hendrix CC, Edie A, Lindsey-Davis L, Nagi A, et al. Effects of nurse-managed protocols in the outpatient management of adults with chronic conditions. A systematic review and meta-analysis. Ann Intern Med. 2014;161:113-21. LinkGoogle Scholar8. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The U.S. nursing workforce: trends in supply and education. Alexandria, VA: Health Resources and Services Administration, Bureau of Health Professions, National Center for Health Workforce Analysis; 2013. Accessed at http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/healthworkforce/reports/nursingworkforce/nursingworkforcefullreport.pdf on 6 June 2014. Google Scholar9. Strömberg A, Mårtensson J, Fridlund B, Levin LA, Karlsson JE, Dahlström U. Nurse-led heart failure clinics improve survival and self-care behaviour in patients with heart failure: results from a prospective, randomised trial. Eur Heart J. 2003;24:1014-23. [PMID: 12788301] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: Sandeep Jauhar, MD, PhD; David Battinelli, MDAffiliations: From Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, Hempstead, New York.Disclosures: Authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest. Forms can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M13-1408.Corresponding Author: Sandeep Jauhar, MD, PhD, Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine, Hempstead, NY 11040; e-mail, SJauhar@NSHS.edu.Current Author Addresses: Drs. Jauhar and Battinelli: Department of Cardiology, Long Island Jewish Medical Center, New Hyde Park, NY 11040. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoEffects of Nurse-Managed Protocols in the Outpatient Management of Adults With Chronic Conditions Ryan J. Shaw , Jennifer R. McDuffie , Cristina C. Hendrix , Alison Edie , Linda Lindsey-Davis , Avishek Nagi , Andrzej S. Kosinski , and John W. Williams Jr. Metrics Cited byThe Effective Use of Psychiatric Mental Health Nurses in Integrated Care: Policy Implications for Increasing Quality and Access to Care 15 July 2014Volume 161, Issue 2Page: 153-154KeywordsBlood pressureCholesterolHeart failureHemoglobinHypertensionLipidsOutpatientsPatientsPreventive medicinePrimary care physicians ePublished: 15 July 2014 Issue Published: 15 July 2014 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2014 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...