Hi everyone, I have a quick question. I was meeting with a student who is in the PMHNP MSN program that I am due to start next fall, and she made some interesting comments. She basically said that PMHNPs can sometimes be expected to do a bit of primary care, depending on the environment (maybe community mental health clinics?) Does anyone know if that is within PMHNP scope of practice or does it depend on the state?
She said that if there is no one to refer to, and if you put them on meds that cause physical problems (like prescribing an antipsychotic and having the patient develop type 2 diabetes), that it is then up to the PMHNP to manage that care, including managing the diabetes, etc, until the patient is able to see a primary care provider. She also made it sound like sometimes PMHNPs will manage physical illnesses if they have a psych component, or just if it's easier for the patient to see one person instead of having to go to two appointments. Has anyone seen this before? I assumed that as a PMHNP I'd function similarly to a psychiatrist and manage psych meds only. Does anyone know if PMHNPs also do some primary care? Does it depend on the setting?