Introduction
Advanced practice nurses remain one of the crucial components of the healthcare system, as they play a major role in providing quality care to patients. They actively participate in the direct diagnosing and treatment of illnesses and disorders, manage patients with chronic issues, and engage in both personal and public health education.
Discussion
Moreover, continuous education of advanced practice nurses allows them to achieve actual and newest medical, technological, and social knowledge which was especially important during the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Their transformational leadership abilities are also crucial to building collaboration and facilitating better care (Goldsberry, 2018). Nurses are at the forefront of healthcare, constantly engaging with patients and addressing various issues. This makes nurses the most important element of the diagnosis and treatment as they remain closest to the patients and their families, and thus have the best understanding of their problems.
The growing pool of responsibilities associated with advanced nursing practice nowadays is affecting physicians as well, facilitating their growth and improvement. In order to offer nurses the best support and empower them in their work, physicians must also engage in constant education, reviewing their tools and methods, and aligning them with actualized guidelines. Norful et al. (2018) add that “successful comanagement can alleviate individual workload, prevent burnout, improve patient care quality, and lead to increased patient access to care” (p. 250). The nurses are the physicians’ direct links to the patients, and that notion should facilitate the improvement of the doctor-nurse relationship to ensure that the needs of patients, nurses, and doctors are met during mutual exchanges.
Conclusion
The Affordable Care Act provided a healthcare model that allowed new care delivery standards to arise. It facilitates collaboration and teamwork of all members of the healthcare provision chain to ensure that both the patients’ and the workers’ needs are met. The issue of accessibility and affordability of healthcare is also raised: the Act provides more insight into providing health services to remote, vulnerable, and discriminated populations. According to Courtemanche et al. (2018), “the ACA reduced coverage disparities across racial groups by 23%, across marital status by 46%, and across age groups by 36%” (p. 307). Finally, it focuses more effort on prevention strategies, as it emphasizes the importance of comprehensive individual and public health education.
References
Courtemanche, C., Marton, J., Ukert, B., Yelowitz, A., Zapata, D., & Fazlul, I. (2018). The three-year impact of the Affordable Care Act on disparities in insurance coverage. Health Services Research, 54, 307–316. Web.
Goldsberry, J. W. (2018). Advanced practice nurses leading the way: Interprofessional collaboration. Nurse Education Today, 65, 1–3. Web.
Norful, A. A., de Jacq, K., Carlino, R., & Poghosyan, L. (2018). Nurse practitioner–physician Comanagement: A theoretical model to alleviate primary care strain. The Annals of Family Medicine, 16(3), 250–256. Web.