Autonomy for nurse practitioners one answer to NC doctor shortage

Highlights

• In the five years since Arizona enacted full practice authority, the number of NPs in rural counties increased by 73 percent
• Removing scope of practice barriers will ensure patients access to timely, high-quality, patient-centered primary health care
• NPs are the right prescription to addressing North Carolina's and America's primary care crisis

BY DEBORAH C. VARNAM

As a nurse practitioner with over 16 years of experience in primary care, I understand what it means to provide high quality health care. I have counseled young mothers to track their babies' milestones, ordered diagnostic tests to confirm the presence of chronic disease, prescribed medications to treat conditions from arrhythmias to pneumonia, identified mental health challenges and coached hundreds of patients toward prevention and wellness.

In my clinic and countless other practices, the demand for primary care has skyrocketed. As of January, there were 145 so-called health professional shortage areas in North Carolina and 6,100 across the United States – a number that has grown by nearly 300 communities in just 18 months, according to the Department of Health and Human Service's Health Resources and Services Administration.
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