Nurse Practitioners (DNP) the new DO?

DO's became the equivalent of MD's by adopting MD training. There's no difference in training now other than DO's learn osteopathic manipulation.

The DNP education and training model is quite different. What may happen is they gain more rights and gain the right to practice independently anywhere, especially for primary care, where we have a relative shortage/distribution problem. DNP's are cheaper, handle the simple cases as well as we do, and patients generally love them (they typically get more time with their patients, and patients love people who spend time to talk and listen to them). It's a very real possibility, especially as the government tries to contain healthcare costs.

Of course, the issues is DNPs, compared to MD's, more often don't know what they don't know, so they can miss things, over-order tests, over consult, etc. But who knows, maybe they actually catch some things we miss because they can spend more time listening to the patient. I know there's a lot of research (funded by the nursing advocacy groups) that says outcomes are the same for patients with simple problems whether they see an MD/DO or a DNP, but I don't think there's any data on more complicated patients. And right now most DNPs would fail simplified USMLE exams, according to another study.

Honestly MD's are over-trained for most things we encounter--but you want someone over-trained when you're dealing with health, well-being, and well, staying alive. Kind of like how structural engineers use a large safety margin--they design a beam/truss/building to withstand the worst conditions they can imagine, and then they add in a safety multiplier. You don't just want what's cheap and efficient--you want something you know is going to last. That's why architects can't design skyscrapers, hospitals, etc., anymore without a structural engineer. However, there's no national debate over spending too much money on concrete and steel because structural engineers are over-engineering buildings...

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Nurse Practitioners (DNP) the new DO?