Page 11 - APP Collaboration - Assessing the Risk (Part One)

SVMIC Advanced Practice Provider Collaboration: Assessing the Risk

medical care to complex procedures, prompting medical

practices to recruit and hire these practitioners. APPs are
viewed as integral members of the team by supporting and

assisting physicians while creating a positive patient experience
and quality care.

Throughout the course, we will review actual medical

professional liability cases involving both physicians and
APPs, outline the areas of potential risk, and offer strategies

for avoiding risks. The names in the case examples have been
changed.

Overview of Nurse Practitioner Practice

According to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners
(AANP), 22 states, plus the District of Columbia, allow nurse

practitioners to practice in an unrestricted manner. These state
practice and licensure laws provide for all nurse practitioners

to evaluate patients, diagnose, order and interpret diagnostic
tests, and initiate and manage treatments—including prescribe

medications—under the exclusive licensure authority of the
state board of nursing. This is the model recommended by the

Institute of Medicine and National Council of State Boards of
Nursing. NOTE: None of the SVMIC insured states allows a

fully independent/unrestricted practice if the APP prescribes
medication. An additional 17 states, including Alabama,

Arkansas, Kentucky, and Mississippi, allow nurse practitioners
to practice under a collaborative agreement. This allows the NP

to provide patient care or limits the setting or scope of one or
more elements of NP practice. In 12 states, including Georgia,

Tennessee, and Virginia, the state practice and licensure law
restricts the ability of a nurse practitioner to engage in at least

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