Advanced Practice Providers: An Operational Guide for Workforce Integration

This is a must-read for all healthcare organizational leaders where advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) and physician assistants (PAs) are a part of the healthcare team. Being able to understand how to best support and utilize this workforce is crucial in the success of any healthcare delivery system. The authors of this book have brilliantly laid out a blueprint to build a strong and engaged APRN/PA staff.

Risa Zimmerman, MBA, MPAS, PA-C, DFAAPA
Director, Office of Advanced Practice
Nebraska Medicine

Within these pages lies a treasure trove of evidence-based tools, templates, pitfalls to avoid, and more for anyone who is interested in advanced practice in healthcare. Maria Lofgren and the Iowa team, with learnings from 15+ years creating a sustainable APP model, have given a huge gift to healthcare delivery globally. I'm especially excited about the thoughtful reflections on staying attuned to relationships between providers as well as the figures and sidebars that highlight policy implications and provide specific examples for implementation.

Ann Williamson, PhD, RN, NEA-BC
Former Chief Nurse and Healthcare Executive

With the rapid expansion of advanced practice providers (APPs) nationwide, new APP leaders seek guidance and insight on building a program of fully optimized providers. Lofgren et al. have accomplished this task, providing a complete and comprehensive road map for C-suites and APP leaders to follow, creating the pillars of supporting practice from student to expert for healthcare organizations.

Bonnie Proulx, DNP, APRN, PNP-BC, FAAN
Senior Vice President Physician Enterprise
Kaufman Hall Healthcare Management and Consulting

Advanced practice providers (APPs) are a quickly growing part of the healthcare workforce, helping to bridge the gap between the demand for physicians and nurses and keeping healthcare costs lower while maintaining a high quality of care. As hospitals, clinics, and healthcare organizations integrate APRNs and PAs into their clinical operations, healthcare leaders need direction on operationalizing these APPs into practice.

Advanced Practice Providers: An Operational Guide for Workforce Integration provides a blueprint for organizations—academic, hospital, and clinic-based —as well as academic programs teaching APRNs and PAs to assimilate the uniqueness of the APP group into existing infrastructures, effectively using resources within organizations to help advance healthcare toward higher quality care, patient safety goals, and team care initiatives.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Chapter 1: Comparison of Medicine and Nursing Infrastructures and the Growing APP Workforce
• Chapter 2: Understanding the Organizational Blueprint
• Chapter 3: Establishing an Infrastructure
• Chapter 4: APRN and PA Scope of Practice
• Chapter 5: Establishing an APP Workforce
• Chapter 6: APP Onboarding
• Chapter 7: Operationalizing Telehealth
• Chapter 8: APRN and PA Students
• Chapter 9: APP Business Pro Forma
• Chapter 10: Credentialing and Privileging
• Chapter 11: Organizational Compliance
• Chapter 12: Professional Development
• Chapter 13: Mentoring
• Chapter 14: Metrics That Matter
• Chapter 15: Team-Based Care
• Chapter 16: Patient Access Center
• Chapter 17: Organizational Initiatives
• Chapter 18: Looking to the Future
• Appendices

AVAILABLE ON THE SIGMA REPOSITORY

• Chapter 18: Looking to the Future
• Author Bios

These free downloads are available at the Sigma Repository.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Maria Lofgren, DNP, ARNP, NNP-BC, CPNP, FAANP, is a Clinical Associate Professor and Director of Faculty Practice at the University of Iowa College of Nursing and the Director of Advanced Practice Providers at University of Iowa Health Care.

Christine Gust, MBA, PHR, SHRM-CP, is Human Resources Generalist at University of Iowa Health Care, Carver College of Medicine, Office of Advanced Practice Providers. Her work has led to aligning HR strategies to advanced practice provider organizational objectives, policies, programs, and initiatives.

Douglas Van Daele, MD, FACS, is a Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine and is affiliated with the Iowa City Veterans Affairs Health Care System.