I had a dream where a small practice in Trenton, NJ had a physician who delivered primary care to some 6,000 patients. This physician rarely took vacations, hired two nurses to assist him and had two secretaries. One secretary filled out insurance forms all day, while the other made appointments and checked the insurance carriers and accepted co-pays during her day. Each month the bills for the office space came in as well as utilities and other service bills. EMR technology became vogue but the physician did not have computer savvy. In fact, he was far behind the times in securing information and in purchasing new equipment.

The local medical center was looking for a chief of clinics and this physician said to himself, “I’ll become an employee, work sensible hours, have no overhead and supervise the staff in the clinics for a salary.” He sold the practice to a local NP and a local PA, both with fifteen years experience in family practice. They made the down payments, purchased their personal liability insurance policies, brought in computers and an EMR, committed themselves to one another and cared for the community. Their practice continued to grow and attract patients who wanted to be compliant in their health care because they were explained how their diseases progressed. Many became healthy and were able to stop taking their prescriptions because they were taught the basics of preventative medicine. They became an example to their colleagues, and the concept began to grow into nearby communities.

The PA and NP celebrated their successes by sharing their testimonies with those in their profession. They were interviewed by the local newspapers, radio and TV stations and even national magazines. They were a super health care team working together to prevent disease and to treat patients with concern and respect. They were awarded the NP/PA Team of the year by both the AANP and the AAPA. I had a dream!

Bob Blumm

Robert M. Blumm has received national recognition as a distinguished fellow of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA). He is the past president of the Association of Plastic Surgery Physician Assistants, and was past-president of the American Association of Surgical Physician Assistants, past president of the American College of Clinicians and NYSSPA, as well as Chairman of the Surgical Congress of the AAPA. In addition, Bob received the John Kirklin MD Award for Professional Excellence from the American Association of Surgical Physician Assistants. Along with his associate, Dr. Acker, Bob was the first recipient of the AAPA PAragon Physician-PA Partnership Award. He has been a contributing author of three textbooks, written 150 plus articles and is a sought out conference speaker throughout the United States.

The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.

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