Interesting LA Times Article on NPs/PAs

[KCMA79]

This should be required reading for all pre and student PAs. It demonstrates what a meat grinder clinical medicine can be. I was a clinical PA in a setting very much like this for 18 yrs before I hit the wall. Fortunately the agency I worked for allowed me to move into a non clinical role. The article fails to mention things like the threats, cussings and the occassional assaults. It touches on the sometimes huge pt. loads, I once was forced to see approx. 30 pts. in 4 hrs. I went into this job right out of school and the only thing that saved me were 2 NPs that took me under their wing for the first couple of yrs.

 

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-theclinic-providers-20130204,0,6512279.story

[Gordon, PA-C]

This should be required reading for all pre and student PAs. It demonstrates what a meat grinder clinical medicine can be. I was a clinical PA in a setting very much like this for 18 yrs before I hit the wall. Fortunately the agency I worked for allowed me to move into a non clinical role. The article fails to mention things like the threats, cussings and the occassional assaults. It touches on the sometimes huge pt. loads, I once was forced to see approx. 30 pts. in 4 hrs. I went into this job right out of school and the only thing that saved me were 2 NPs that took me under their wing for the first couple of yrs.

 

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-theclinic-providers-20130204,0,6512279.story

 

 

these factories exist for one purpose -- to make the medical director a TON of $$$$

 

Dont feed me this BS about how you have to see 50 patients a day because of the "demand." The reason these people see 50 patients a day each is because somebody at the top of the food chain (i.e. MD medical director) is making some SERIOUS coin off of these PAs/NPs

[KCMA79]

Hasn't it always been that way? PAs are usually money making machines for the practice they work for.

[EMEDPA]

I interviewed at one of these very places in downtown LA as a new grad.

I walked out when the medical director(a pathologist!) told me my scope of practice would be seeing all the "colored patients".

wow, just wow.

[KCMA79]

I interviewed at one of these very places in downtown LA as a new grad.

I walked out when the medical director(a pathologist!) told me my scope of practice would be seeing all the "colored patients".

wow, just wow.

 

Fortunately I worked for a large county Health Services Agency so I was somewhat insulated from the worst abuses of these Medi Cal mills. I didn't live or die by the whim of my SP and had a good salary and a golden benefit package. Many of the patients I saw were what was classified as medically indigent since they didn't even have Medi Cal (medicaid) so the mills wouldn't even see them.

[MedicinePower]

Has anyone ever told their SP or admin that they refuse to see more than X patients a day? It sounds like these NPs and PAs are extremely overworked yet the article didn't mention how or why they have 30-50 patients scheduled or what they are doing to prevent burnout. If I was in this position I simply would say, "I will only see 20 patients a day. After the 20th patient I will be going home." It's not there are a plethora of PAs and NPs to take the job (article said they are running 3 short) so it appears the providers have some leverage.

 

Thoughts? Comments?

[Hemegroup]

I interviewed at one of these very places in downtown LA as a new grad.

I walked out when the medical director(a pathologist!) told me my scope of practice would be seeing all the "colored patients".

wow, just wow.

 

my poor clinic, i think they must think i blew a gasket i laughed so loud

[discogenic]

these factories exist for one purpose -- to make the medical director a TON of $$$$

 

Has anyone ever told their SP or admin that they refuse to see more than X patients a day? It sounds like these NPs and PAs are extremely overworked yet the article didn't mention how or why they have 30-50 patients scheduled or what they are doing to prevent burnout. If I was in this position I simply would say, "I will only see 20 patients a day. After the 20th patient I will be going home." It's not there are a plethora of PAs and NPs to take the job (article said they are running 3 short) so it appears the providers have some leverage.

 

Thoughts? Comments?

 

If these places are about making the higher-ups tons of money, then I would think that if you stand in the way of that, you're history. And if the number of new PA schools does rapidly expand, as discussed in other threads, then it won't be long before these practices will have no problem filling the available PA openings...and maybe even do it for less.

[Theyus]

I've heard about clinics like this in the Valley in Texas. Clinicians bragged about seeing 70-100 patients a day. They made tons of money, clinicians and clinics alike. There obviously was a huge need in the area, but I seriously doubt a patient, who's likely getting about a maximum of 5 minutes of time with a clinician, is getting quality treatment.

 

Faculty strongly discourage us from going this route for a myriad of reasons, but my understanding is that you'd only take a job like this for the money. There are plenty of options to help people (at least in Texas) and not see 50+ patients a day, but they don't pay as well.