Nonphysician clinicians in the neonatal intensive care unit: meeting the needs of our smallest patients.

Full Abstract

Regional variations in the distribution of neonatal physicians and dependence on housestaff with restricted work hours have created workforce shortages in many NICUs. Although neonatal nurse practitioners assist in the delivery of high-quality care, availability of these providers may be inadequate in certain regions. Physician assistants represent a historically underutilized resource to resolve neonatology's workforce issues. We have developed a postgraduate training program for physician assistants in neonatology that we hope will improve local and regional workforce shortages. In this article we discuss the history of neonatal nurse practitioners and physician assistants in newborn care and outline the program that we developed. We further discuss some of the barriers we had to overcome in developing this program. Our program can serve as a model for other neonatology programs to adequately prepare physician assistants for a career in the NICU.

Learn Faster Today Improve your study skills

Author information

Author/s: Reynolds, Eric W (EW); Bricker, J Timothy (JT);

Affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, 800 Rose St, MS 477, Lexington, KY 40536, USA. ereyn2(-atsign-)uky.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Historical Article; Journal Article

Journal: Pediatrics (Pediatrics), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2007-Feb; vol 119 (issue 2) : pp 361-9

Dates: Created 2007/02/02; Completed 2007/03/19;

PMID: 17272626, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article (including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.

MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Infant, Premature
Intensive Care Units, Neonatal - manpower
Physician Assistants - education; history
United States

These are the highest related articles currently in the database:

Comparison of neonatal nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and residents in the neonatal intensive care unit. 29 Nov 1994
Use of pediatric physician extenders in pediatric and neonatal intensive care units. 30 Oct 1994
Training and use of surgeon's assistants. 30 Mar 1978
Cross cultural communication to help physician assistants provide unbiased health care. 30 Dec 1991
In-vitro fertilization: a neonatal paediatrician's perspective. 30 Jan 1990
American Academy of Pediatrics. Committee on Fetus and Newborn. Manpower needs in neonatal pediatrics. 29 Jun 1985
The physician's associate-a task analysis. 29 Nov 1973
Physician assistants and health system reform. Clinical capabilities, practice activities, and potential roles. 25 Apr 1994
PAs--physician assistants. 30 Aug 1996
Comparison of five inservicing methods in an intensive care nursery. 29 Apr 1993

See 100+ related articles.