Discussion Thread: Healthcare Professionals
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Discussion Response: Healthcare Professionals
Ashlynn Limandri
School of Business, Liberty University
BUSI 502: Servant Leadership
Dr. Carol Brown-Bulloch
May 25, 2024
A Physician's role- To assess a patient's condition, Diagnose abnormalities and prescribe
treatment for a patient. Their training is graduation from an accredited college with an MD or
DO degree, successful completion of a licensing exam
from the National Board of Medical
Examiners or the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners. The Physician’s practice
requirements are a 1-year rotating internship, followed by 2-6 years of residency. They practice
in hospitals for in-patient care/ referral care and offices for out-patients (annual- exams or
pap-smear, annual exams, etc (Shi & Singh, 2019, p.177).
A RegisteredNurse’s (Registered Nurse) role is to tend to the mental, physical and emotional
needs of a patient. Their training is a graduation from an accredited college ( 4-5 Years BSN),
followed by successful completion of an N-CLEX (National- Certification Licensing Exam)
licensing examination that meets the resident’s standard and a supervised clinical experience.
They practice in hospitals, nursing homes, rehab facilities, assisted living for in-patient care and
home care for out-patient care (Shi & Singh, 2019, p. 197).
Discussion Thread: Healthcare Professionals
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An Advanced- Practice Nurses’s role is to promote wellness and health through patient
education and spend time with the patient encouraging them to take charge of their own health
and explaining the importance of taking those actions. They must obtain education through the
Master’s or Doctorate level in an accredited program. Once they complete that program, they
must do a clinical in direct patient care. They can practice in any setting alongside the other
professionals mentioned, but can also have their own practice. (Shi & Singh, 2019, p. 199).
Policy and Workforce Issues
Though these roles all have their own respective training and practice requirements, they have
similar policy impact and workforce issues. One of those issues became an issue in the midst of
the COVID-19 Pandemic. That is Scope of Practice limitations (SOP). These limitations make it
impossible for a physician, Nurse or APN to perform their full scope of practice if they are out of
their licensing state. During COVID, 38 States loosened these restrictions because of the extreme
shortage of healthcare providers. The extended shifts and high chances of contraction of the
respiratory virus forced this (ZIeman, 2023, p.138), but also showed how necessary it is to
loosen up on these regulations in the future. Other policies that have affected the healthcare
profession over the course of the past decades are the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which
indirectly drives up the cost of healthcare for the patient (Shi &Singh, 2019, p.). Politicians who
write healthcare policy must consider how funding can be increased, yet keep the cost associated
with care down. The question that is left to answer is just that.“What policies can our politicians
write together regarding healthcare costs and how will it allow healthcare providers to practice
throughout the US, keeping cost of care down?” These are important questions to answer
because then we can determine how the providers work together most effectively. There is also a
Discussion Thread: Healthcare Professionals
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a higher concentration of Physicians in the Northeast than in the South, which presents trouble in
receiving care for citizens in Southern states (Shi & Singh, 2019, p.184)..
In conclusion many healthcare policies have been written that have simultaneously hurt
and helped the US public. During COVID the governors of many states loosened up on SOP
regulations
to allow more healthcare providers to care for patients. That was one provision that
made healthcare more efficient and effective for the patient; therefore, it should remain. On the
other hand the ACA has not really positively impacted many in the population of the US. This is
because even though the cost is low, some of the necessary providers and/ or the technologies
required for the patient’s care indirectly increase the cost of care, making it impossible to
receive. It also presents a problem in the shortage of health workers as aging populations require
physicians , nurses and APN, but there will not be enough because patient numbers are
increasing in relation to the lower number of providers. Policy makers must find the way to
allow for care to remain affordable to the patient and encompass all care modules necessary(Shi
& Singh, 2019, pp. 180-184).
References
Shi, L., Singh, D. A., & Shi, L. (2019). Essentials of the U.S. health care system (Fifth edition.).
Jones & Bartlett Learning.
ZIemann, M., Strasser, J., Krips, M., Yang, Y.T., & Pittman, P. (2023). How governor directives
changed health workforce flexibility in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Public
Health Reports (1974), 138(1_suppl), 78S-89S.
https://doi.org/10.1177/00333549221132534 .
