APN Practice Demonstrates Cost-effectiveness
Using the South University Library do a search and find at least three (3) research article addressing the questions:
Describe how APN practice demonstrates cost-effectiveness.
Describe how APN practice can influence reduction in errors.
Describes how APN practice effects misuse or overuse of services.
Support responses with examples and at least 3 peer review articles.
Sample Answer
Describe how APN Practice Demonstrates Cost-effectiveness
Advanced Nurse practitioners are a suitable solution to the growing consumer demand for wellness and preventive health care. APNs have been continuously proved to be cost-effective providers of high-quality care compared to primary healthcare providers, who are more expensive but provide almost similar patients outcomes. Studies have shown that APNs patients tend to incur less in-hospital expenditure, approximately 9% less than physicians. The aging population is most commonly affected by chronic conditions such as hypertension and diabetes, among other co-occurring disorders. Consequently, the demand for quality and affordable health services continues to increase among this population (Woo et al., 2017).
APNs can assist in adding value to this population and cutting the extra costs that are sometimes involved. Some of the ways APNs can demonstrate cost-effectiveness include decreasing the length of hospital stay among older adults; longer stay in hospitals is usually associated with increased costs. APNs patients have been shown to have shorter stays in hospitals than physicians. APNs have also been shown to be effective in decreasing patient admissions. This is because APNs provide holistic care and not just diagnosis and treatment as physicians. For example, APNs are likely to advise their patients on diet and exercise during their treatment, which improves their outcomes. APNs, unlike physicians, are rarely on rotation; hence, they can focus on their patients, understand their needs better, and provide necessary interventions, which contributes to decreased length of stay in the hospital, lowering the costs. APNs have also been shown to demonstrate better adherence to treatment recommendations. For example, in emergency care units, APNs have been shown to initiate required treatment at the required times, which improves the quality of life of the patient and reduces the occurrence of complications that lead to high costs (Morgan et al., 2019).
Describe how APN Practice Can Influence Reduction in Errors
Medical errors are a common occurrence in the US healthcare system and contribute to significant deaths every year. Some of the ways APNs can influence the reduction in medical errors include collaboration with other care-involved care providers; interprofessional collaboration effectively delivers quality care. It allows all those involved in care provision to consult with one another and be involved in shared decision-making, which minimizes the chances of errors. APNs can also facilitate the reduction of workload on care providers. A major cause of errors in healthcare is associated with increased patient workloads, and thus APNs can assist in reducing the workload on care providers, thus minimizing chances of medical errors. A study by Gaffney et al. (2016) found that higher levels of education were related to a reduction in medical errors. APNs, have higher education levels, unlike other nurses, and therefore using their training can apply to reduce medical errors in healthcare settings (Htay & Whitehead, 2021).
Describes how APN Practice Effects Misuse or Overuse of Services
Overuse of medical services occurs when a treatment is provided without adequate medical justification, while misuse occurs when the patients fail to receive full medical benefits due to preventable errors or when harmed by the treatment provided. APNs can contribute to curbing misuse and overuse of services through nursing advocacy by developing communication strategies with other care providers to ensure that they understand the extent of the problem and its implication on patients’ health. APNs can also utilize nursing informatics, several programs track the use of prescribed drugs, and APNs can use these databases to identify drug misuse and service overuse cases. By mapping out the problem, appropriate strategies can be made to deal with the problem (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 2014).
