Proud papa

[JBrax]

Proud to say my youngest daughter walked the stage today with her nursing degree.

 

[Matthew J Poes]

congrats!

 

[leecreek]

Congratulations for you both.

 

[tripplej]

congrats! way to go!

My mom and my wife are nurses. Great profession.

 

[JBrax]

Thanks fellas!

 

[GFOviedo]

That’s so awesome. Congratulations to both of you!

 

[Sonnie Parker]

Congratulations! We have a couple of friends who are RN's and they are doing very well for themselves.

Won't be long and daughter can take care of daddy!

 

[mechman]

 

[Todd Anderson]

Huge accomplishment! Congrats to you both!!!

 

[JBrax]

Thanks, my oldest is also a RN so I should be ok if the old body ever breaks down.

 

[Todd Anderson]

That should definitely come in handy!

 

[Matthew J Poes]

Thanks, my oldest is also a RN so I should be ok if the old body ever breaks down.

Between my families business and my own work I know a bit about demand for healthcare professionals. There is, as I’m sure you know, a shortage of doctors and nurses. While doctors make more and remain in short supply, the plan to help reduce healthcare costs is actually to continue to move toward a medical system that relies on nurses first with Nurse practitioners and Physicians Assistants being who most people would see (or really, RN’s for the vast majority of treatment). We don’t have anywhere near enough RN’s or Nurse Practitioners for this planned future which means both of your kids will be in high demand. And if they ever want to make more, they can always go back to school for a Nurse Practioners degree. My understanding is that there is also a plan to make those easier to obtain in a shorter time. You will see a lot more professional degree programs show up in the next decade or so.

A lot of smart people who are examining our medical system against that of other countries and looking for ways to cut costs have concluded that basically our front line staff are over qualified for what they do. Namely, we use doctors to do too much diagnosing and treatment. They are too expensive for that. So as I mentioned above, plans to shift our healthcare and reduce costs mean greater demand for good RN’s to step up into bigger roles than they traditionally play.

 

[JBrax]

Well, it just so happens my oldest plans on doing exactly what you’ve said. She initially planned on going the MD route but said she would advance her degree in a few years. Her plan is to become a Nurse Practitioner but said changes were coming in the field.

 

[Matthew J Poes]

Well, it just so happens my oldest plans on doing exactly what you’ve said. She initially planned on going the MD route but said she would advance her degree in a few years. Her plan is to become a Nurse Practitioner but said changes were coming in the field.

That all sounds great! I wish your kids luck in this. If I hear anything related to changes that may benefit your kids, I'll let you know. As I understand, there are changes taking place that would make waiting potentially better (though nothing wrong with doing it now) and in some cases, may even provide opportunities for reduced or free schooling. One of the big changes is already in progress and that is a change to the standing of the NP degree. Currently, it is not considered a professional doctorate, it is more like an advanced Masters degree, though even that isn't really true. It was suggested years ago that it be changed to a professional doctorate and be accepted as such by all regence boards. My understanding is that this is now taking place. It is possible the transition already took place, but I don't think so. This has no material benefit to your daughters (other than maybe in prestige) but does have an effect on how policy can be formed. It will become the equivalent of a doctorate of nursing (and you will have to call your kids Dr!).