skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

Could Rule Change Improve Rural Health Care in Texas?

play audio
Play

Friday, May 25, 2018   

AUSTIN, Texas – There are more than 300 medically under-served communities in Texas that some groups say could be better served by a change in regulations.

Advanced Practice Registered Nurses, known as APRNs, are fully trained to treat and diagnose acute and chronic illnesses, and practice full primary care. But rules in Texas restrict them from providing care to the full extent of their education and training.

Elizabeth Ellis is a doctorate-level nurse practitioner who owns and operates the B.I.S. Community Clinic in Bedias. She explains a supervisory rule limits the scope of practice of APRNs because it requires them to have a contract with a collaborating physician.

"Texas is a large state with very large health care needs, and rural health needs,” says Ellis. “We need to get with the future and provide independent practice to our highly qualified and highly trained nurse practitioners that have experience. "

Texas ranks 46th among states for the number of physicians practicing in rural areas. AARP, the Texas Association of Business and the Texas Public Policy Foundation are among the groups that support expanding nurse practitioners' scope of practice.

Research from the Journal of Nurse Practitioners shows that health outcomes for patients cared for by nurse practitioners is the same or better of that of a physician. And Ellis argues costly supervisory contracts can hamper patient care.

"We're having to pay them and in my case divert funds away from my clinic that could be utilized towards providing additional equipment or services in my clinic so that I can pay for a physician to be my collaborating provider,” says Ellis.

Some physicians organizations argue that doctors have more extensive training and experience in patient care, and say rules are needed to ensure safety. But Ellis counters changing the regulations would not end collaboration between medical professionals.

"We all have our certain limitations and scope so if you're a good practitioner you know where your limitations are and you're always going to reach out to your colleague and to ensure the appropriate treatment plan for your patient when you need to,” says Ellis.

More than 20 other states allow nurse practitioners to work to the full scope of their training without a supervisory contract, and the Department of Veterans Affairs also extended full practice authority.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
Iowa families can apply for up to $7,600 a year for private school costs. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

An ethics committee in the Republican-led Iowa House has dismissed a complaint filed by a group of community activists against a state lawmaker for hi…


play sound

Each spring, hundreds of thousands of California high school seniors have to figure out if they can afford to go to college in the fall - and two new …

Social Issues

play sound

South Dakota is creating an Office of Indigent Legal Services after House Bill 1057 passed the Legislature with nearly unanimous support this month…


Data show Oak Ridge residents pay $2.67 million in taxes toward nuclear weapons programs. (fizkes/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

A Knoxville-based environmental group is voicing concerns over what it sees as an increasing financial strain imposed on taxpayers by nuclear weapons …

Social Issues

play sound

This year's high school graduates will be eligible for 14,000 new scholarships offered through Opportunity Next Colorado, a $21 million investment …

The new law will apply only to future sales of Indiana farmland. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

A bipartisan law set to take effect this summer prohibits foreign adversaries from buying Hoosier farmland. The signature of Gov. Eric Holcomb was …

Social Issues

play sound

Today, people across Arizona are voting in the Presidential Preference Election, a chance for registered Democrats and Republicans to choose their …

Environment

play sound

Traffic deaths are trending higher in Minnesota this year after a decline the previous year. Groups pushing for safer roads are convinced a small …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021