Great article that supports NCCPA doing a CAQ for IM/PCP

[ventana]

This is a very well written article and supports what I have been preaching for decades. My ??? is why does NCCPA no have a CAQ for IM/PCP??

https://www.statnews.com/2022/05/11/danger-primary-care-rescue-path-burned-out-specialists/

 

 

The danger of letting primary care be a rescue path for burned-out specialists

ReprintsBy Sara PastoorMay 11, 2022

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ADOBE

One of the best-known effects of the Covid-19 pandemic has been the stress and sense of being overwhelmed experienced by frontline health care workers. Often under-resourced and taking casualties within their own ranks, they have been straining under the weight of responsibility to care for a tsunami of Covid casualties. In the center of this relentless firestorm has been the emergency medicine physician, who have been called to give more of themselves than should ever be asked of anyone. Their burnout and exhaustion is unsustainable.

Perhaps it was the pandemic that sparked an emerging, yet largely unreported phenomenon I’ve witnessed firsthand in which emergency medicine physicians are leaving their work and opening independent primary care practices in the direct primary care sector of health care. Direct primary care operates at the fringes of the health care industry, funded by subscription-based payments that patients usually pay out of pocket. No insurance billing means no credentialing, no quality reporting, no oversight of any kind. Many primary care physicians have sought refuge in this model to escape the insurance-based toxicity of the traditional fee-for-service payment system — and anecdotally, it’s working. The direct primary care model seems better for both primary care providers and their patients. Win-win. And without regulatory and reimbursement oversight, the rules are honorary, leaving room for much-needed innovation but also for interlopers.

The U.S. desperately needs more primary care clinicians. Yet as a residency-trained, board-certified family medicine physician, I have concerns about this phenomenon. Primary care physicians are trained to provide care in diverse settings, including primary care clinics, urgent care clinics, emergency departments, inpatient units, and long-term care facilities. Emergency physicians, on the other hand, are residency-trained and board-certified to provide care only in urgent and emergency care settings. My colleagues in emergency medicine are the experts at saving lives and identifying serious problems. When their patients are not admitted to the hospital, they are sent out the door with instructions to follow up with someone else — usually a primary care provider.

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This is a very different approach to receiving care from primary care physicians, who are specifically trained to cultivate a longitudinal relationship with their patients — managing multiple acute and chronic diseases, serving as health care quarterbacks, setting treatment goals, and collaborating with their patients to address the fundamental lifestyle behaviors and social drivers that affect health. It isn’t clear to me what qualifies emergency physicians to function in a primary care capacity without primary care expertise.

Related:

 

PRIMARY CARE CLINICIANS ARE THE GLUE TO HEALTH AND WELLNESS. THEIR SHORTAGE SPELLS TROUBLE

There is an antiquated mindset that primary care physicians, who ideally are the foundation of a high-functioning and sustainable health care system, are “general practitioners” who know just enough to diagnose and treat the basic stuff. In this misinformed framework, physicians who specialize in other areas of medicine are doing the harder, more important work which requires greater expertise beyond primary care — expertise only they possess. Not everyone can be a neurologist — you have to have special training for that; not everyone can be an ophthalmologist — you have to have special training for that, too. But anyone, so the thinking goes, can work in primary care — no special training required. The premise seems to be that primary care requires the basic health care knowledge that everyone learns in the beginning of their medical training, and every other specialty is “more” than that.

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When I was a medical director at a large military treatment facility earlier in my career, resident physicians from a variety of specialty programs were occasionally sent to our primary care clinic when they couldn’t perform up to the standards of their specialty training programs. They were considered “flunkies,” for lack of a better term, so they were sent to primary care where they could do the least damage — because of the erroneous belief that primary care is easy to do. But it turned out that primary care was not easy, and these physicians performed poorer clinically and had more patient complaints than their coworkers trained in primary care. They also required greater supervision by the very primary care physicians they were sent to work with because they didn’t know how to do the work.

This distorted image of primary care is part of the problem in our dysfunctional American sick care system. Primary care is powerful. High-quality primary care has the ability to influence 90% of our $4 trillion in annual health care spending in the U.S. For every $1 invested in primary care, the U.S. saves $13 in downstream spending. And primary care increases life expectancy, improves quality of life, and increases patient satisfaction. Primary care achieves this through proactive, comprehensive, coordinated care based on a longitudinal relationship between the patient and a primary care physician they trust. No other medical specialty can claim such outcomes, including emergency medicine.

On behalf of primary care specialists everywhere, I’m here to say that primary care is not “easy.” There is a reason that primary care residency programs and board certifications exist. It takes a particular personality type and intensive training in a unique skillset to be a “comprehensivist.” Primary care physicians provide more mental health care in the U.S. than mental health specialists do. Primary care physicians are available for their patients, educating them, advocating for them, and guiding them through the best and worst times of their lives. They prevent disease, ensure early detection of cancer, and assist with end-of-life planning.

Related:

 

IN A BATTLE OVER THE FUTURE OF U.S. HEALTH CARE, A QUESTION EMERGES: IS PRIMARY CARE SCALABLE?

The idea of an emergency physician opening a primary care practice, representing themselves as a primary care physician to patients and communities, is anathema. I cannot open a practice and represent myself as a neurologist or an ophthalmologist. Not only would insurance companies not credential me in those specialties, it would appall people when they inevitably discovered I was masquerading in a different specialty outside my field of expertise. Should there not be similar responses to the emergency physician described here? This comes with risk to patients and our communities.

I have incredible gratitude and compassion for my emergency medicine colleagues. Their work throughout this pandemic has been arduous and traumatic. I wish for them to experience respite and relief. Yet if they want to be practicing primary care physicians, they need to complete a primary care residency program and pass a primary care specialty board examination. We’re committed to our patients and our craft, and would love for them to join our ranks — the ethical and honorable way.

Sara Pastoor is a family medicine physician; co-director of Presence Health, a direct primary care practice in Austin, Texas; and director of primary care advancement for Elation Health, a technology platform for independent primary care practices.

[sas5814]

Great read and great points! Primary care doesn't get much respect.

[LKPAC]

Very true. I've been a PC/FM PCP for decades.  In a single day I see and treat issues with psych, cards, ortho, IM, peds, OB/GYN, ENT, derm, etc...

Primary care deserves more respect! (and pay.)

[iconic]

I don't know who in their right mind would go into primary care to escape specialty burn out 

[mgriffiths]

1 hour ago, iconic said:

I don't know who in their right mind would go into primary care to escape specialty burn out 

Yeah...I did the exact opposite.  Still struggle with burnout, but has less to do with my actual job and just plain stupidity from admin...whereas in primary care I struggled both with admin AND my job.

[PACali]

I gave all the respect to primary care providers. We need more PA in primary care. I think primary care PA have better job satisfaction because of the autonomy and the continuity of patient care. 

However, I am against "primary care CAQ" I think NCCPA certification IS already the Primary Care CAQ and NCCPA need to let the world know that! Primary care is the backbone of our training. A primary care CAQ will decrease the number of PA practicing in primary care in my opinion.

Let's not give NCCPA idea to take more money from us. 

 

 

[ventana]

6 hours ago, PACali said:

I gave all the respect to primary care providers. We need more PA in primary care. I think primary care PA have better job satisfaction because of the autonomy and the continuity of patient care. 

However, I am against "primary care CAQ" I think NCCPA certification IS already the Primary Care CAQ and NCCPA need to let the world know that! Primary care is the backbone of our training. A primary care CAQ will decrease the number of PA practicing in primary care in my opinion.

Let's not give NCCPA idea to take more money from us. 

 

 

Just so misguided. 
MD. DO don’t graduate Med school and instantly become pcp’.  They go through three years of residency. Then test. 
 

to state that PA school = enough knowledge to be PCP is wrong and insulting to those of us in the field. 
 

as well it totally disregards the political environment where NP are literally taking jobs away from PA.   I am at the top of my career and sometimes have to explain why I am equal or better then NP. This is an uphill battle as the NP are independent and doctorate level so they must know more.   
 

I understand status quo but status quo in this case means the ongoing degradation and shrinking of our profession.  
 

 

[rev ronin]

@ventana do FNPs do anything more before hanging out their shingles as primary care providers? If they don't, why would we want to invest in that barrier?

[turnedintoamartian]

6 minutes ago, rev ronin said:

@ventana do FNPs do anything more before hanging out their shingles as primary care providers? If they don't, why would we want to invest in that barrier?

It demonstrates additional rigor and competency in an environment where we are PR/legislatively outgunned. Perhaps it also provides some cover when arguing about the lack of residency time.

[rev ronin]

2 minutes ago, turnedintoamartian said:

It demonstrates additional rigor and competency in an environment where we are PR/legislatively outgunned. Perhaps it also provides some cover when arguing about the lack of residency time.

Does it? Why doesn't the additional clinical time vs. NP's count?

[turnedintoamartian]

1 hour ago, rev ronin said:

Does it? Why doesn't the additional clinical time vs. NP's count?

Maybe the purported history of NPs being RNs first? Also as someone who is in primary care: it shows that I have put additional time/training/effort specifically for the role of being a primary care clinician. Not that I am simply maintaining the bare minimum standard to maintain a license that is non-specific. I guess it’s similar to FM docs screaming Family Medicine IS a specialty. 

[ventana]

Horse has already left the stable folks. 
 

CAQ is in place but I guess PCP is not worthy 

NP and DNP are 90% there towards equal to physician.   They are now going after reimbursement parity to docs.  
 

we are loosing the battles and the war.   Yes let’s argue about something that might actually help us keep up.   I really don’t care if I have to certify 4000 hrs of experience and get recommended by my doc. Those are easy.  A CAQ is one more feather in the hat to try to not get totally shut out of job market. 
 

I also think we have the responsibility to protect our patients and society.  No NP or PA should be independent in first few years out of school.  Just because NP have gone after total independence doesn’t mean we should not take steps to advance the PA profession and protect society through a CAQ process.   

[PACali]

11 hours ago, ventana said:

Just so misguided. 
MD. DO don’t graduate Med school and instantly become pcp’.  They go through three years of residency. Then test. 
 

to state that PA school = enough knowledge to be PCP is wrong and insulting to those of us in the field. 
 

as well it totally disregards the political environment where NP are literally taking jobs away from PA.   I am at the top of my career and sometimes have to explain why I am equal or better then NP. This is an uphill battle as the NP are independent and doctorate level so they must know more.   
 

I understand status quo but status quo in this case means the ongoing degradation and shrinking of our profession.  
 

 

No one is saying a new grad is equal to your level of expertise. 

A PA with a "PCP CAQ" is still not same as you.  Minimal requirement for a CAQ is 18months of experience and passed a 120 question exam. You have 20+ year experience. Patient still rather go see you. 

I don't think the profession is ready for CAQ. I used to support it but not anymore. 

I am not against any type "primary care board certification"  for PAs, but first we need a standardized primary care post-graduate training programs that are available to all PA students. 

For example, How can someone get a Dermatology CAQ? when he or she can't even get hire because a CAQ is required? 

I think we put the cart before the horse. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[iconic]

On 5/14/2022 at 7:41 PM, ventana said:

Horse has already left the stable folks. 
 

CAQ is in place but I guess PCP is not worthy 

NP and DNP are 90% there towards equal to physician.   They are now going after reimbursement parity to docs.  
 

we are loosing the battles and the war.   Yes let’s argue about something that might actually help us keep up.   I really don’t care if I have to certify 4000 hrs of experience and get recommended by my doc. Those are easy.  A CAQ is one more feather in the hat to try to not get totally shut out of job market. 
 

I also think we have the responsibility to protect our patients and society.  No NP or PA should be independent in first few years out of school.  Just because NP have gone after total independence doesn’t mean we should not take steps to advance the PA profession and protect society through a CAQ process.   

There is no process in place that would grant PAs independence for getting a CAQ

What exactly is the point of PANCE?

What specialty is a new grad PA qualified to work in?

[ventana]

14 hours ago, iconic said:

There is no process in place that would grant PAs independence for getting a CAQ

 

missing the point.  We are getting killed by NP.  We need to be able to tout our qualifications. 

14 hours ago, iconic said:

What exactly is the point of PANCE?

 

protects society by defining a min knowledge level  (funds NCCPA)

 

14 hours ago, iconic said:

 

 

What specialty is a new grad PA qualified to work in?

Any speciality where there is mentoring and interest.