HANDOFF
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Striking for Safety
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Nurses at Garfield Medical Center in Monterey Park, California, have begun a ten-day strike, demanding that hospital management address the short-staffing issues that nurses say threaten patient safety. Other complaints by the nurse union, SEIU 121RN, include inadequate supplies, “broken and substandard equipment, and inadequate safeguards to protect nurses from violent attacks,” reports the L.A. Times. Administrators accuse the nurses of only being after more money, but a state investigation has already held the hospital responsible for a patient’s fall.
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Rising Profile of NPs and PAs
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More patients than ever are seeing NPs and PAs for primary care and chronic disease management, filling the gaps left by a physician shortage projected to worsen. That’s no surprise to those in the field, but the rest of the public is waking up to the value of PAs and NPs in managing their healthcare, as a feature at USA Today discusses. It’s chock full of research comparing outcomes between advanced practitioners and physicians.
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The Debate On “Doctor”
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We told you previously about the California NP fined nearly $20,000 for using the title “doctor” because she had a doctorate. And we reported that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed a Florida law attempting to restrict the title’s use. But this issue is only gaining steam, with recently passed laws in Georgia and Indiana restricting the use of “doctor.” The Washington Post delves into the issue with an excellent feature about what’s happening and what’s at stake.
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