Happy 3rd Anniversary to US!
Happy 3rd Anniversary to this wonderful community of providers, patients and partners!
This autumn marks our third year in business – and soon, I will celebrate 13 years of being a psychiatric clinician (NP and RN). How extraordinary!
The reason we’re here is because of you – my clients and my referring practitioner partners. As clients, you have given space and opportunity and support for the idea that psychiatry should be more human, where client and practitioner are part of a team of care. You have come to sessions, referred friends, family and colleagues who became new patients. And as referring practitioners, you have entrusted us with the most precious collateral – your own clients. Most importantly, every one of you has given and continues to give me hundreds of reasons to show up each day to the best work ever.
What I Bring As An Advanced Practice/Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner
In many professions there is talk about what contributes to a practitioner’s expertise. In my case, you are getting the benefit of my 6 years of schooling, 3 years as a RN, nearly 10 years as a psychiatric nurse practitioner, as well as my experience as a former professor and clinical preceptor, national speaker and advisor, board member and national office holder. Whew. Those 13 years have been busy. The benefit is clear: I am grateful to say that when you come to this office, or when you refer a client to me, you are getting experience. You are getting humility. You are getting an advocate. And I aim to keep expanding my expertise and experience so I can continue bringing even more to each session.
Three Years In Business!
I think back over these years to that first day. I didn’t know if anyone would come. We started on a Saturday, with 4 appointments, 1 day a week. Now we see 6-10 appointments a day, 4-5 days a week. What a wonderful evolution. Our practice model affords so much higher quality of experience and treatment to every single person with whom I work – and to me, as well. Why? Time – we have time. To talk, to breath, to really get into the nuts and bolts of the healing process, medication management, and setting achievable goals toward wellness.
How is this model different? According to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, over half of nurse practitioners in traditional insurance-driven models today see 3+ patients per hour. At a clip of 24 or more clients per day, accounting for a lunch break and 5 minutes between clients, that averages out to a grand total of less than 15 minutes per client.
No wonder my clients are happier and doing better – they get 300% more time and attention than in typical models. And, I am a better practitioner, too. Can you imagine the strain of the typical practice model? How can practitioners give each client the attention they deserve when they themselves are so over-scheduled and thinly stretched?
FAQs: Got Questions About Our Future? I’ve Got Answers!
What’s my future aim? More of the same! Helping people achieve their best lives. Helping the next generation of clinicians as I train and mentor new practitioners to grow and achieve their own goals. And, working to overcome institutional challenges that stand in the way of us delivering the best experiences possible for our clients.
How big do you want this office to grow?
Growing a “big practice” does not appeal to me. With a practice that is small- to medium-sized, I like how nimble and individualized we can be. I don’t want us to get to the size where the next appointment is 3 months out. People need to be able to get in quickly –when people are in pain, that shouldn’t have to wait. Personally, I love the idea of sustaining and improving our practice, and keeping it balanced so that clients get the very best care and attention, and me and my team are working at peak and are not overtaxed or exhausted. I like the idea of adding just the right level of staff and improved facilities so that all our clients, consulting partners and referring practitioners feel well cared for.
When are you going to take insurance?
When insurance recognizes that appropriate reimbursement allows a clinician to stop and really work with these very deep, intimate, and emotional forces that are involved, then I may consider taking insurance. Insurance right now is a business designed to enrich the insurance companies, minimize service to the covered clients and pay as little to providers as possible. In the mental health arena, payments are less than other medical specialties and the payment drops rapidly with follow up. In other words, when I see you next I’m supposed to allocate you just 15 minutes or less to tell me how you’ve been for the last three months – good, bad or ugly. Fifteen minutes to determine if you are on the right meds or give you meaningful options and advice. Fifteen minutes to determine if we are achieving deep and meaningful change or just throwing another pill at you. Doesn’t seem like medicine to me.
What is important to you in your daily life? Beyond my professional endeavors, being a good husband and spouse and family member is central to my life. I want to have balance, good health, and the energy to give to my community and be able to spontaneously say and do nice things for people around me. That matters and makes me a better person too. And of course, the dogs! They fill my heart with joy. All these things make me a better person and practitioner.
What’s most interesting to you about this work?
Being witness to, and helping someone on their journey, is magical to me. It’s wonderful to watch people stop hurting, but the real rush is from watching people go beyond where they were. There’s this idea of “recovery.” But so many people didn’t ever have that baseline, that level of normal in the first place, to retrieve, recover, get back to. This is new territory. What do we call this process of achieving beyond where they were, this brand new type of life and living? “Un-covery” – or maybe “discovery”? Whatever it is, it represents more – and watching my clients achieve more is absolutely thrilling.
Seriously – I have the BEST job.
Thank you, all of you, so very much.
Here’s to our 4th Year – may it be the best ever, for each and every one of us.