Shreveport Med School may close

[JuBru]

Actually, they are very good and very well trained. I like working with them and the docs like and trust them, as well. Which way do you want it? I implemented it to improve quality and save tax money. We can do more with less using them. That is just the way it is and this was WAY before Obamacare.

PA's shouldn't be used to treat a patient for psych. Otherwise they are pretty useful. Only necessary to see a "real" doctor if the case needs to be more scrutiny.

[champion110]

PA's shouldn't be used to treat a patient for psych. Otherwise they are pretty useful. Only necessary to see a "real" doctor if the case needs to be more scrutiny.

???????? OF COURSE THEY SHOULD! Wow! We have very stable consumers and PA's and NP's do great work with med checks. This is in addition to case management and doctor supervision and seen by doctor, when needed. We have benefited greatly from it. It makes no sense to say that they should not be used for Psych. We don't use them for crisis or urgent care, if that is what you mean.

[JuBru]

???????? OF COURSE THEY SHOULD! Wow! We have very stable consumers and PA's and NP's do great work with med checks. This is in addition to case management and doctor supervision and seen by doctor, when needed. We have benefited greatly from it. It makes no sense to say that they should not be used for Psych. We don't use them for crisis or urgent care, if that is what you mean.

No, I mean psych. Psych is not a general problem. Specialist are needed for it. PA's are not specialist in this regard. A PA determines if a person needs to see psych, but don't provide the actual treatment.

I'm willing to try to understand why that might be wrong.

[SteveyTI]

No, I mean psych. Psych is not a general problem. Specialist are needed for it. PA's are not specialist in this regard. A PA determines if a person needs to see psych, but don't provide the actual treatment.

I'm willing to try to understand why that might be wrong.

As a current PA student I can assure you that you are incorrect. PA's are utilized in every field of medicine including psych and provide a multitude of services to that patient population. PA's are free to work in any setting that a doctor will hire them and a PA with a reasonable amount of experience in psych should be completely competent to render treatment in that specialty. It is a mandatory rotation in school.

[Bigdog13]

You can make it float with NP's and PA's and they are not government employees. They are Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants. They can prescribe, but must be supervised by doctors. It is much less expensive and we have implemented this within my organization. We can't use them for telemedicine yet - due to Texas lagging behind on this, but we are using them in abundance for face to face med checks in Psych.

Maybe but that wasn't my point. The point was the big hiring spree won't be Doctors. It is IRS agents. The IRS is charged with enforcing Obamacare and they are hiring tons of agents to handle the work. Great Idea! The IRS is VERY trustworthy. What could possibly go wrong??

[JuBru]

As a current PA student I can assure you that you are incorrect. PA's are utilized in every field of medicine including psych and provide a multitude of services to that patient population. PA's are free to work in any setting that a doctor will hire them and a PA with a reasonable amount of experience in psych should be completely competent to render treatment in that specialty. It is a mandatory rotation in school.

I admit I could be confusing a PA with a primary care manager (or whatever you want to call it).

[RhythmDawg]

As a hospital CEO, I can 100% agree with Champ. Accept them. Get used to them.

[RhythmDawg]

Maybe but that wasn't my point. The point was the big hiring spree won't be Doctors. It is IRS agents. The IRS is charged with enforcing Obamacare and they are hiring tons of agents to handle the work. Great Idea! The IRS is VERY trustworthy. What could possibly go wrong??

plus, HHS is hiring "navigators" to implement it. Louisiana gets 32 total, each making 6 figures, to transition 846,000 people in Louisiana. Yes, I typed 32 for 846,000...at 30min to an hour each.

[champion110]

plus, HHS is hiring "navigators" to implement it. Louisiana gets 32 total, each making 6 figures, to transition 846,000 people in Louisiana. Yes, I typed 32 for 846,000...at 30min to an hour each.

Yep, we just applied for a Navigator grant that will cover 75 Counties in Texas. Talk about a lengthy application. Our grant was for 1.2 million.

[champion110]

I admit I could be confusing a PA with a primary care manager (or whatever you want to call it).

Yes, you are confusing the two. A PA is a Physician's Assistant, can prescribe, and is very qualified. They must be supervised by a doctor and go over the cases with a doctor. We use them and NP's. The doctor's love it and it really ends up utilizing the doctors more effeciently and for their expertise. Perfect for psych. med management.

[champion110]

plus, HHS is hiring "navigators" to implement it. Louisiana gets 32 total, each making 6 figures, to transition 846,000 people in Louisiana. Yes, I typed 32 for 846,000...at 30min to an hour each.

Oh, and the Navigators will make between 25 and 32K a year - not 6 figures, unless Louisiana is doing it different than we are. That isn't exactly getting anyone rich. :icon_wink:

[RhythmDawg]

Oh, and the Navigators will make between 25 and 32K a year - not 6 figures, unless Louisiana is doing it different than we are. That isn't exactly getting anyone rich. :icon_wink:

Yeah, you are correct. That number is a number I heard for the managers, not the navigators themselves. Also, many states are not requiring them to be licensed in any way or have the same level of training as an insurance rep. Louisiana is one of them that is requiring, is my understanding.

[champion110]

Yeah, you are correct. That number is a number I heard for the managers, not the navigators themselves. Also, many states are not requiring them to be licensed in any way or have the same level of training as an insurance rep. Louisiana is one of them that is requiring, is my understanding.

Texas isn't requiring it. They each will have to have 30 hours of training, but that is it. Ours are going to be more clerical type persons. I am in a back and forth disagreement with my Board Chair right now on needing a Coordinator over all of them. We already have Benefits Departments at each of our Centers. I had my grant writer put in for a Coordinator on the regional level, but my Board Chair thinks we could just have a "Lead Navigator" at one of the Centers. I don't like to fool with Federal Grants without someone coordinating it. Right now I am sticking to my opinion of keeping that in the grant.

[eagle2180]

Pay More! Get Less! It is now the American Way. If I am going to pay to see a Dr.. I want to see a Dr. not a dang PA or NP. That is like paying for an architect or engineer and the work being done by a drafter.

[SteveyTI]

Pay More! Get Less! It is now the American Way. If I am going to pay to see a Dr.. I want to see a Dr. not a dang PA or NP. That is like paying for an architect or engineer and the work being done by a drafter.

When you go see a PA or NP you are paying to see a PA or an NP. Medicare recognizes this and reimburses at 85% of the Doctors fee schedule. There are many people in this country that share your opinion on this issue and there is nothing wrong with that. When i decided to enter the field, I knew that some people would not want to see a PA, but I also knew that there are many that just want to be treated by a qualified healthcare professional and prefer to not have to wait to get an appointment with a very busy doctor weeks later. To say that you are getting an inferior service is plain incorrect though.