In Practice: Reflections from NPs and PAs

October 19th, 2016

Fighting Decision Fatigue

Harrison Reed, PA-C

It was an impossible choice. The seconds ticked by, but no matter how I strained my mind, I could not find a solution. She sighed and asked again. “Harrison, where do you want to eat?” I buried my face in my hands. How could this simple question stump a person who makes a hundred monumental choices each […]

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October 14th, 2016

From the Locker Room to the Exam Room

Elizabeth Donahue, RN, MSN, NP-C

On Sunday morning I went to an early and excruciatingly difficult barre class with a friend, after which we promptly rewarded ourselves with a decadent brunch. While walking home alone in the rain, hood drawn and head tucked down against the wind, I was taken aback when a man reached out and pushed me aside […]

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September 29th, 2016

Why I No Longer Tolerate Anti-Vaxxers

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

One may ask why I am all of a sudden fixated on vaccines. I have always been a pro-vaxxer. In graduate school, I once prided myself for talking a whole family into getting vaccines. And I certainly have always promoted vaccines when practicing. But I used to think that the decision to vaccinate, although important, was […]

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September 14th, 2016

Service Industry

Harrison Reed, PA-C

“You little clown,” A fleck of saliva flew from his mouth with each word. “Are you making a joke?” The back of my neck grew hot as I sweltered under the man’s glare. He had arrived to the airport hours before his scheduled flight dragging his wife and three kids, depleted from a week at Disney […]

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September 8th, 2016

Seasons of Healthcare

Elizabeth Donahue, RN, MSN, NP-C

Here in New England, the temperatures have started to dip in the evenings and the sun is setting earlier by the day. These changes are noted and commented upon during exchanges in coffee shops, the local market, and literally over the water cooler in my office. And this past weekend, my family, friends, and I […]

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August 31st, 2016

Why Men Shouldn’t Have to Do Pelvic Exams

Scott Cuyjet, RN, MSN, FNP-C

I want to be totally honest up front and say that my real motivation for this blog post is that I don’t want to do any gyn/vaginal exams. I am uncomfortable doing something so intimate on a patient. After the exam, we would both know I had looked at, touched, or been inside the patient’s […]

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August 18th, 2016

The Caregiver Conundrum

Charity Maniates, MSPA, MPH, PA-C

My patient’s daughter, Jane, sits tensely on the edge of the wingback chair. Leaning forward slightly, her body, like a jack-in-the-box, stays seated, and she fires the question, “Do you really think my mother is ready to come home? Is this safe?” Rippling beneath her intense body language and direct questioning is a pervasive fear that […]

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August 10th, 2016

Playing Victim

Harrison Reed, PA-C

You are sick of hearing it, but we need to talk about this one more time. By the end you might be angry or frustrated; you might even hate me a little. That’s OK. It’s worth it. America’s opioid epidemic is nothing less than a crisis. I could bury you under CDC statistics but I think […]

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August 3rd, 2016

It Takes a Village

Elizabeth Donahue, RN, MSN, NP-C

The Democratic National Convention is taking place at the time I’m writing this blog post. During an opening speech last night, the current First Lady referenced this phrase made popular by a former First Lady: “it takes a village.” I’ll pause here to say that I’m not going to get political in this blog — […]

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July 27th, 2016

School Schedules Make for Sleepy Teens

Scott Cuyjet, RN, MSN, FNP-C

As high school students wind down their summers, I am reminded of a study I read last year from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), which concluded that most students at middle and high schools start their school day too early. Their early start times were disrupting their natural sleep pattern and subsequently leading to […]

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