CHC Radio

Nurse Practitioners: A Growing Opportunity

Originally broadcast December 12, 2024

Nurse practitioners, at 385,000 strong in the U.S., are increasingly seen as a key part of the solution to the primary care provider shortage. What are the challenges and opportunities to ensure everyone can get the care they need when they need it? Our guest is the president of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, Stephen Ferrara, DNP. He also serves as the inaugural associate dean of artificial intelligence and a professor of nursing at the Columbia University School of Nursing.

Hosts Mark Masselli and Margaret Flinter (who has been a family nurse practitioner for many years) discuss the opportunities for Ferrara and his members as they seek to expand what’s called “scope of practice.” In fact, the percentage of medical visits handled by health care providers other than physicians nearly doubled between 2013 and 2019, with many of those patients seen by nurse practitioners.

Conversations on Health Care

Share
Published by
Conversations on Health Care

Recent Posts

KFF Health News Covers $50 Billion Rural Health Transformation: Latest Details

The new Rural Health Transformation Program aims to improve “healthcare access, quality, and outcomes” with…

1 day ago

Happy, Healthy New Year: What the Future Holds

New research. New technology. New possibilities. On this special 2025 Rewind and Look Ahead episode…

2 weeks ago

2025 Rewind: Our guests recount the promises and hurdles

Health care policy faced major upheavals during the past 12 months and the effects are…

3 weeks ago

“Unbearable: Five Women and the Perils of Pregnancy in America”: Author Conversation

Eighty percent of maternal deaths in the United States are considered preventable. So why do…

3 weeks ago

Congress Races to Find Obamacare Subsidy Solution: Reporters Examine the Efforts

Originally broadcast December 11, 2025 Congress is scrambling to find a solution to the enhanced…

4 weeks ago

Flu Cases Rising: “It’s Not Good,” Says Former CDC Dir. Dr. Tom Frieden

Originally broadcast December 4, 2025 The doctor who once led the Centers for Disease Control…

4 weeks ago