Liability and collaborative arrangements for nurse practitioner practice in Australia.

Liability and collaborative arrangements for nurse practitioner practice in Australia.
Aust Health Rev. 2019 Dec 05;:
Authors: Chiarella M, Currie J, Wand T
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to clarify the relationship between medical practitioners (MPs) and nurse practitioners (NPs) in general, and privately practising NPs (PPNPs) in particular, in relation to collaboration, control and supervision in Australia, as well as to explore the difficulties reported by PPNPs in establishing mandated collaborative arrangements with MPs in Australia. In order for the PPNPs to have access to the Medicare Benefit Schedule (MBS) and Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) in Australia, they are required, by law, to establish a collaborative arrangement with an MP or an entity that employs MPs. This paper begins by describing the history of and requirements for collaborative arrangements, then outlines the nature of successful collaboration and the reported difficulties. It goes on to address some of the commonly held misconceptions in order to allay medical concerns and enable less restrictive access to the MBS and PBS for PPNPs. This, in turn, would improve patient access to highly specialised and expert PPNP care.What is known about the topic?NPs have been part of the Australian health workforce since 1998, but until 2009 their patients did not receive any reimbursement for care delivered by PPNPs. In 2009, the Federal government introduced ...

Source: Australian Health Review - December 4, 2019 Category: Hospital Management Authors: Chiarella M, Currie J, Wand T Tags: Aust Health Rev Source Type: research