Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed a bill into law May 2 preventing nonphysicians from using specialty titles such as "doctor," in an effort to promote transparency for patients.
Senate Bill 197 was written by state Sen. Chuck Hufstetler, a certified anesthesiologist assistant. It's summary outlines an aim "to prohibit deceptive or misleading terms or false representations by healthcare practitioners in advertisements and representations" and to do the same regarding the "misappropriation of medical or medical specialty titles."
Patients and their families are intelligent, they grasp the difference between DNP and MD.
This right here is where you lost me. I can say with some level of certainty that if you walked in and said "Hey I'm Dr. Allen", the overwhelming majority would assume you to be a physician that graduated from medical school.
Most patients and families are woefully uninformed on the entire medical system.
I encourage you to do some reading on healthcare literacy..
NP's have nowhere near the skill or training of a board certified physician. Your little online programs and "clinical hours" which I've observed many times over the years is just the NP student shadowing. That's it. Not doing anything but observing. I won't see a NP. I'll see a PA, depending on the circumstances. Otherwise I only see MD/DO's.
I personally find your comments to be insulting. NP's start medical education in Nursing 101, and it goes all the way through all of our degrees. You won't see an NP with extensive medical knowledge and expertise, but you will see a PA who has an undergrad degree in a science based program, and a Master's degree which is where they begin their medical training. As far as I am concerned, I would rather see a NP. They have the medical training, where the PA can't match the clinical hours nurses put in to obtain their degrees. I don't know what program you observed, But any program that I had seen the nurses come in for clinical, they were busy. Yes at times they shadow, but it's not all the time. Most of the time they are involved in patient care.
I completely disagree with this legislation. If you earn the degree, you earn the title. You did the work that was expected of you in order for you to obtain that Doctoral Degree, you should be able to use the title, Dr. I think that this is because MD's have their nose out of joint because Nurses can be Drs., Doctor of Nurse Practice. I don't know a DNP that does not only introduce themselves as Dr, they also make sure that the patients understand that they are Nurses and not MD's. How is this going to effect Psychologist's? My friend is a PsyD, and is referred to as Dr. Will she have to change this in Georgia?
NP's have nowhere near the skill or training of a board certified physician. Your little online programs and "clinical hours" which I've observed many times over the years is just the NP student shadowing. That's it. Not doing anything but observing. I won't see a NP. I'll see a PA, depending on the circumstances. Otherwise I only see MD/DO's.
In the olden times before online graduate "education" in nursing, I worked with a terrific NP who impressed me with his knowledge and common sense. Now that I actually have a health condition, I stay away because so many of the programs stink.
In the olden times before online graduate "education" in nursing, I worked with a terrific NP who impressed me with his knowledge and common sense. Now that I actually have a health condition, I stay away because so many of the programs stink.
I see that my addendum didn't make it here. From what I am seeing about NP admission policies, more schools are requiring up to 2 years of experience before admission. I hope this is becoming a trend because our profession has to take its standards back. We've become so lax in the past 3 decades or so. I guess it's about trying to meet a need but, if we are going to churn them out like hot dogs, we need to rise to the occasion by providing providers who can graduate on Friday and go to work on Monday. Paid internships would be a good start. No student should EVER be required to search for their own preceptor. That's a big red flag that the program isn't providing the service the student us pay for. Plus it shows a lack of education commitment or rigor on the part of the the schools and our credentialing agencies. Especially Florida.
Does this silliness apply to people who hold any doctorate or just medical professionals? My Dad had a doctorate, his students referred to him as "Dr Last Name," his degree was in psychology and he was a university professor. My son is a doctor, has a doctorate in physical therapy which is health-related, He works for a travel company, does this mean if he accepts a contract in Georgia he can't use his earned title?
Does this silliness apply to people who hold any doctorate or just medical professionals? My Dad had a doctorate, his students referred to him as "Dr Last Name," his degree was in psychology and he was a university professor. My son is a doctor, has a doctorate in physical therapy which is health-related, He works for a travel company, does this mean if he accepts a contract in Georgia he can't use his earned title?
It looks that way... Only MD's can call themselves Dr. I think that is ridiculous, if you did the work and earned the degree you should be able to use it. You know, some of the MD's are so arrogant. They think that they are so superior and no one else can be a Dr. Well, a doctoral degree gives you a Doctorate, and the right to call yourself Dr. Ugh, this is ridiculous...
It looks that way... Only MD's can call themselves Dr. I think that is ridiculous, if you did the work and earned the degree you should be able to use it. You know, some of the MD's are so arrogant. They think that they are so superior and no one else can be a Dr. Well, a doctoral degree gives you a Doctorate, and the right to call yourself Dr. Ugh, this is ridiculous...
This is where this debate always lands, but it doesn't change the fact that "doctor" in a clinical setting carries a specific connotation - a physician who graduated from medical school.
If there was someone walking around in a clinical setting asking to be called "Dr Smith" but their doctorate is in ancient philosophy, no one would hesitate to say "ehhh that's not really a good idea".
It blurs the lines, and those who are militant about it are doing it intentionally. Why can't people just stay in their lanes, acknowledge what each role brings to the table, and be proud of their place in the system?
This is where this debate always lands, but it doesn't change the fact that "doctor" in a clinical setting carries a specific connotation - a physician who graduated from medical school.
If there was someone walking around in a clinical setting asking to be called "Dr Smith" but their doctorate is in ancient philosophy, no one would hesitate to say "ehhh that's not really a good idea".
It blurs the lines, and those who are militant about it are doing it intentionally. Why can't people just stay in their lanes, acknowledge what each role brings to the table, and be proud of their place in the system?
I don't really have that narrow understanding of what a doctor is. And as previously noted, someone with a doctorate in psychology might present themselves as Dr X in a clinical setting. Context is important. You always want to know what someone's credentials are and for what reason they are seeing you - the introduction should include that information. It's all part of a professional introduction.
Unless it is changed at the academic level, the title used this the title earned. If you earned a doctorate then that is who you are.
I don't really have that narrow understanding of what a doctor is. And as previously noted, someone with a doctorate in psychology might present themselves as Dr X in a clinical setting. Context is important. You always want to know what someone's credentials are and for what reason they are seeing you - the introduction should include that information. It's all part of a professional introduction.
Unless it is changed at the academic level, the title used this the title earned. If you earned a doctorate then that is who you are.
YOU don't, because you're in the system. Ignoring healthcare literacy of the average person in America is the single most important factor in why people fail to realize that this is actually an issue.
YOU don't, because you're in the system. Ignoring healthcare literacy of the average person in America is the single most important factor in why people fail to realize that this is actually an issue.
I used to work with a male CRNA who never corrected a patient who called him doctor. I always thought it was a liability issue because the patient who sues can say that the practitioner didn't make it clear who they were before they went into the OR. When anxiety levels are high, the brains go out the window so I'm not blaming the patient but I can tell when they are just watching our lips move. I would never need to boost my ego my presenting myself to a patient as "doctor" of anything. The title "CRNA" is much clearer just as the title of NP is clearer to a patient.
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FiremedicMike, BSN, RN, EMT-P
596 Posts
This right here is where you lost me. I can say with some level of certainty that if you walked in and said "Hey I'm Dr. Allen", the overwhelming majority would assume you to be a physician that graduated from medical school.
Most patients and families are woefully uninformed on the entire medical system.
I encourage you to do some reading on healthcare literacy..