[PrvPracNP] Websites/Blogs for and about NP's

Tue Mar 27 21:10:14 PDT 2007

I would definitely be an active participant and share the horrible
experiences I have been put through the last five years in private, rural
health practice (my own) in Louisiana where the good ole boys thrive and the
rest of us try to survive and our BON is snowed by the Medical Community and
association as are our legislatures and private insurances who back doctors
and legislators to keep us in our places not being credentialed or allowed
on their credentialing boards and therefore we are either not paid or paid
out of network.  How long can anyone hang onto private insurance patients
who have to pay all or 40% on top of their premiums?  None!  Even though in
the 5 years I have offered free diabetic education classes in my office and
in another town 20 miles away every four months and have diagnosed close to
3000+ diabetics most of whom begged their docs to test them further for
diabetes and the doc told them no.  Then when I tell them that when they are
dx they have actually had diabetes for a good 10 to 15 years, they get so
mad because they think about all the time that has been wasted not
preventing further damage to their organs!  A lot of these have been private
insurance and they are faithful, but unless they get a respite from the
cost, they have to eventually leave which is so exasperating - all the work,
teaching, getting them to goal, checking their feet, HgA1C q 3 months, eye
exams yrly as well as urine for microalbumin,ect., etc.  And all of the
other patients who I treat as family and probably shouldn't, but they need
so much teaching and prompting, checking up on (I call my staff and I the
blood sugar police, the blood pressure police, the breathing police and we
call to check on them until we get them straightened out.  Making house
calls to 80 and 90 yr old sweeties who I am so afraid will break something
if they have to come all the time to my office - or the 60 yr old retarded
girl whose mother died of a heart attach a few months after I started going
to see them at home in the country of a farming community (we are all
farming in Southwest LA, the ones who are not oil or blown away by the
hurricaines) 25 - 30 miles from my office - and asked me to please continue
seeing her daughter if something happened to her ( she must have had a
dream...) anyway she is bed bound, totally dependent on her sister and niece
who have taken care of her for last 5 years since the mother died and have
sustained accusations by home healths that they were not taking good care of
the girl, that the girl was too bad and they should put her in a nursing
home, that I was just a NP and they should see a doctor  - well they
promised their mother and grandmother that they would keep her home and care
for her and they have done an excellent job - I stop by without notice when
I have to go to a meeting in north or central LA and she is always clean,
and well cared for - she has her moments and times when she is ill, has
chronic UTI's, has a PEG tube because she goes on strike every now and then
and won't eat, mediport for the many times she has to have antibiotics, for
which her insurance is Medicare ( her social security from her father is
$100 too much for Medicaid and so they must pay for ambulance trips to
hospital or any other place which is quite expensive, medication needed for
current infection and which medicare will not pay for and so sister, who can
ill affort to, has to pay for the expenses whatever they are.  I coukd
probably write an encyclopedia but had better not.  Had better go to bed so
I can teach two diabetic classes tomorrow after seeing patients in am at
noon and after afternoon class to help other NP that will sub for me
tomorrow.

But I have plenty to offer about the pitfalls and what I have learned from
every mistake I have made in the book.  I love the idea of a patient blog
also and could probably get patients to add their comments about their
horrible experience  with doctors and why they are so happy to see me as a
NP who explains everything to them and listens to their concerns when
doctors DO NOT!

Let me at it!

Thanks,

Nina Ravey, MSN, RN, CNS, BC-FNP, APRN

Shirley Medical Clinic

711 N. Main St.

Jennings, LA 70546

337-824-2002 or 2005

Fax: 337-824-2004

ninanp at bellsouth.net

www.shirleymedical.com <http://www.shirleymedical.com/> 

  _____  

From: prvpracnp-bounces at nurse.net [mailto:prvpracnp-bounces at nurse.net] On
Behalf Of Barbara C. Phillips
Sent: Tuesday, March 27, 2007 9:30 AM
To: 'NP Info'; 'Private Practice NPs'; 'NP Clinical'
Subject: [PrvPracNP] Websites/Blogs for and about NP's

Colleagues,

Forgive the cross posting, but I wanted to get this out to as many of you as
possible.

If there was a blog or a website that was geared toward NPs in Business (any
kind of NP business/practice), and another one geared to health care
consumers about NP Practice, would you be willing to participate? 

The first one would be geared toward NP business owners and those who wish
to start a business (different types of practice and business). I envision
it being our own experiences, a place to ask questions and get answers. A
resource for those starting out and those of us already there. It would
require input from other NP's as I can not possibly do it myself. Would you
be willing to write an article, post to the blog, make comments, answer
questions, talk about your practice, and/or ????

The second one would be geared toward health care consumers and the public
in general. What NP's can do (ie scope of practice), advantages of having an
NP as your primary care provider, etc.  Education is sorely needed (just
yesterday, I had to explain to a rep for an A1c device, that I was "the
doctor" and not "the nurse" and I could indeed order and perform the test!).
Again, I ask if you would be willing to participate. You would be able to
talk about resources in your neck of the woods, your own practice, the types
of practices, etc. (I also hope to get some "real" patients to give their
input on the difference in health care they receive from NP's).

I look forward to hear your comments, thoughts, and suggestion. 

Barbara C. Phillips, NP

Aberdeen Primary Care

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