I Am Not Comfortable with This: Application to Scope of Practice

Dr Gregory J Jurkovich lays out a cogent argument on how surgeons can shirk their obligations by backing away from difficult cases by claiming not to be comfortable with the challenge.1 This is human nature, and many of us try to fight it. If the surgeon refers away a difficult case, then there are missed opportunities. However, there is not a political advantage. Not so with mid-level practitioners like nurse practitioners. These providers lobby for more licensure privileges. They then take easy diagnostic and treatment problems and refer away those that “they are not comfortable” with, even if it is within their scope of practice.

Source: Journal of the American College of Surgeons - May 4, 2021 Category: Surgery Authors: John F. Maher Tags: Letter Source Type: research