Private Practice and FNP Question

[IcanHealYou]

Hey everyone,

I have a couple of questions about the life of an FNP. I'm an RN now and wanting to go back to school. Originally when I started to become a nurse I was and still am very interested in primary care. A big concern for me is actually leaving the hospital setting to become an NP in a doctors office. I would like to know the lifestyle that NPs have working outside of the hospital. I'm worried about healthcare and retirement benefits because I wouldn't be associated with a big organization anymore. Ideally I would love to work for a hospital and do primary care with one of their outpatient facilities. Can anyone give me any insight on this? THanks much.

Ken

[SHGR, MSN, RN, CNS]

I'm not an NP, but a grad student in a large primary care office in Milwaukee, WI.

I don't know of any physicians' offices around here that are not affiliated with one of the hospital systems or another big organization, except for a handful of tiny one-doc practices that look straight out of the 1950's. Almost all of the specialty offices have merged with hosp. systems too. But even for instance a tiny urban clinic I know of, staffed by two NP's, is run and funded by one of the hospital systems.

In rural areas or small towns it is different of course, it's common enough for a tiny practice.

I don't think our area is unusual in any way- for better or worse, this is how health care is now. You work for an umbrella organization, you abide by their rules and see patients every ten minutes, push them out the door, and get health insurance, retirement, and all the other corporate benefits.