In Practice: Reflections from NPs and PAs

January 19th, 2017

Interview with Jon Harris, PA-C — Health Care for the Homeless

Bianca Belcher, MPH, PA-C

I met Jon Harris, PA-C, during his days as a PA student at Northeastern University and was immediately impressed. He excelled in my course, and I knew that he was destined to be an impactful clinician. He previously had graduated from Columbia University with a degree in environmental sciences and spent several years working in […]

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January 11th, 2017

On the Front Lines of Regional Medicine

Emily F. Moore, RN, MSN, CPNP-PC, CCRN

Being of Alaska Native decent, my desire to practice medicine in Alaska was only natural. However, once I started venturing out into the large geographical region my institution serves, I realized there is nothing scarier than sending a fragile patient home to some of these isolated areas. A large part of my job is to collaborate […]

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December 22nd, 2016

A Lesson in Hospitality

Elizabeth Donahue, RN, MSN, NP-C

A couple of weeks ago I was wandering through the centuries-old walled city of Assisi in the central region of Italy. I was lost in the quaintness of the cobblestone streets, the piazzas, the fountains … and then curiously interested in the oldest thing I had ever seen up until that point (having not yet […]

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December 8th, 2016

Intracranial Aneurysms for the Non-Neurosurgical Provider: Primer Series, Part 3

Bianca Belcher, MPH, PA-C

In part 3 of this primer series, I will discuss a basic overview of monitoring patients who are not undergoing treatment for intracranial aneurysm as well as potential treatment options for those who are. (See part 1 for a summary of natural history studies and part 2 for information on patient risk factors.) Many times the […]

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November 30th, 2016

A Colicky Conundrum

Emily F. Moore, RN, MSN, CPNP-PC, CCRN

After my first baby, I always said that my second one was bound to be clingy, colicky, and skinny, as my first daughter was fat and happy. Aside from a few bursts of crying between 4 and 6 weeks of age, she was the perfect baby. My second daughter is now 3.5 months old. When she […]

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November 25th, 2016

A Word of Precaution

Harrison Reed, PA-C

When I try to explain the art of medicine to people –family, friends, strangers on airplanes—I scare them a little. You see, I sometimes say, in medicine there is often not a right or wrong answer. Two clinicians, both competent, might approach the same problem in two very different ways. We don’t refer to one […]

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November 16th, 2016

Before You Do Anything Else, Take a Deep Breath

Elizabeth Donahue, RN, MSN, NP-C

Exactly one week ago I arrived at my office in a stupor that it seemed even my favorite coffee shop could not fix. I had not slept more than two hours the night before, and on top of being tired, I was emotional. I had spent too much time in the wee hours of the […]

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November 9th, 2016

Social Media Is Bad for Kids’ Mental Health

Scott Cuyjet, RN, MSN, FNP-C

I remember reading an article in ESPN about a 19-year-old woman who appeared to have the perfect life on social media, but who jumped off a parking structure to her death. I specifically recall the reactions of people close to her who could not imagine why she did this, as her life appeared so perfect. […]

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November 2nd, 2016

Intracranial Aneurysms for the Non-Neurosurgical Provider: Primer Series (Part 2)

Bianca Belcher, MPH, PA-C

In Part 2 of this primer series on intracranial aneurysms for non-neurosurgical providers, I will discuss modifiable and non-modifiable patient risk factors for subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) during intracranial aneurysm treatment. Modifiable Risks: Hypertension (HTN)[1] Patients with mild-moderate HTN (defined by systolic blood pressure of 130-169 mmHg) have a hazard risk (HR) of 2.3 for SAH compared with patients with […]

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October 26th, 2016

Friday Night Lights

Emily F. Moore, RN, MSN, CPNP-PC, CCRN

Most everyone has some association with football. Whether we know someone who’s played, played ourselves, or simply have nostalgic memories watching the game, football is a familiar sport to most Americans. I, for one, absolutely love football. Surprisingly, I never realized the danger involved with football until I met my husband, a high school football coach. […]

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