NP Wikipedia Article

[Riburn3]

Has anyone taken a gander at this recently? Looks like someone with a pro-physician lobby has gotten ahold of the page and it really casts NPs in a very negative light.

Some of the statements like contact hours and education aren’t inaccurate, but they definately go out of their way to make us look bad and it’s very one sided. Many of the “articles” cited are actually just surveys conducted by physicians. Kind of funny.

Theres a whole section on “quality of care” that is basically bogus and doesn’t care to reference or mention any articles that are based on systemic reviews that say we actually have better ourcomes than physicians in many regards.

[Riburn3, BSN, MSN, APRN, NP]

I think the issue is the person that edited the article is a preferred editor, sooverriding him/her is more difficult. The article also has a soft lock until November.

[Riburn3, BSN, MSN, APRN, NP]

8 hours ago, Dodongo said:

I won't patronize anyone by explaining why that is.

NP education (primarily the CCNE and ACEN) needs an overhaul. Period.

Meh, our group did fire a physician because they were a giant dumpster fire and couldn’t punch their way out of a paper bag. They were a hangover of the previous hospitalist service.

They never quit, but at least the NPs knew it wasn’t the right fit for them and didn’t need to be fired.

[OUxPhys, BSN, RN]

5 hours ago, Riburn3 said:

There are tons of discussions about this over the years on here.

Youll see posters say that experience matters. You’ll have some that didn’t have any experience and say it didn’t hurt them.

My personal belief is that its helpful in many ways.

I felt very prepared in my program because I had 6 years of ICU/CCU when I started, and didn’t struggle in the program like some folks with less experience

That experience also left me with better connections for employment, and my first job out of school was a direct result of having experience. Many in my class likewise.

I tend to agree. I (personally) think experience matters.

[FullGlass, BSN, MSN, NP]

23 hours ago, Riburn3 said:

Meh, our group did fire a physician because they were a giant dumpster fire and couldn’t punch their way out of a paper bag. They were a hangover of the previous hospitalist service.

They never quit, but at least the NPs knew it wasn’t the right fit for them and didn’t need to be fired.

Physicians adhere to a bell curve - most are ok, some are awesome, and some of them are terrible. Physicians are NOT all created equal.

Here are some of my observations about MDs:

1. Many MDs have terrible people skills. I am not blaming them for this. Unfortunately, they have to study like crazy from a very young age in order to get into a good medical school, so developing good interpersonal skills isn't high on their priority list. Then, in medical school, they are taught they are the equivalent of God, which worsens their interpersonal skills, and they are also abused badly as med students, interns, and residents. I see this in the MDs I work with. I think 2 of them have Asperger's. One of them is just a jerk. The other one is normal. Our clinic fired an MD and is about to fire another one.

For example, the NPs in my clinic have normal chit chat, and we sometimes socialize after work. The MDs literally don't know how to have a non-work conversation and seem horrified at the idea of any socializing, with the exception of the "normal" MD. I've had "normal" MDs tell me they don't have MD friends, because most MDs are too weird.

I work in a primary care clinic. We have a small hospital nearby and one of the ER MDs is such a jerk, patients will call the ER to see which MD is working, and if it is him, they will go to another hospital.

2. Many MDs have terrible communications skills. This probably flows from #1 above. Unfortunately, very frequently, after one of my patients sees a specialist, they make an appointment to see me because they understood absolutely nothing the specialist told them!

3. MDs make mistakes, too. They are hardly infallible. I would argue one can make a case that they are more likely to try and do something they don't really understand due to their "God" complex, while NPs are more likely to admit they don't know something and seek help.

Here are some examples of MD mistakes from just my first year as an NP:

- Pt has terrible ear infection with lots of visible pus in ear. MD tells them they are crazy and to make appointment with mental health.

- Pt is clearly very ill. Went to MD who said their 20 minutes was up, so too bad, so sad. Pt comes to see me next day. I send them to ER. MD yells at me for undermining him. Turns out pt has retropharyngeal abscess which has led to sepsis and is hospitalized for 3 weeks (took hospital 3 days to figure this out).

- MD is notified that the lab called for a critical value (this could literally be life or death). MD responds, "I don't care, that's not my patient," and refuses to take action. An NP has to handle it.

- Pt goes to small ER on Thursday, due to fall resulting in broken knee cap. ER MD tells them to see me. Pt does not come to see me until the following Monday and is in agony. I send them to big city ER. Pt is admitted for complications due to untreated fracture.

- MD resident got fired because he ignored the patients and just worked on his computer, and left me, a BSN student, to run group for mental health patients.

I am sick of NPs bashing NPs. There is certainly room for improvement, but that is true of any profession.

Finally, I highly recommend a book, "The No *** Rule." It is a very short read, most of you can read it in a couple of hours. The book discusses how obnoxious jerks in the workplace can bring overall productivity down. Doctors are in the top 3 most obnoxious professionals.