Are practice nurses really agents of connectivity?

The Australian Primary Health Care Nurses Association (APNA) states that nurses are the ‘Agents of Connectivity’ by ‘connecting different disciplines within the practice, between patients and clinicians, between administrative staff and GPs and between the community setting and hospitals’.

A practice nurse can benefit your practice and certainly improve the quality of patient care, but how much value do they add to your clinic?

Often, smaller medical practices debate whether to employ a practice nurse. Many will agree that a good practice nurse is an invaluable addition to a successful medical centre, however some will run without any nurses at all.

We have seen practices successfully do this by:

Ensuring that a practice nurses’ role is identified, documented and communicated thoroughly.
Discussing the role of the practice nurse with the GPs working in the clinic in order to avoid confusion. Many GPs may have different requirements of the nursing staff to what is intended by the practice. For example, some GPs like to recall their own patients in order to discuss results or complete their own care plans whilst others may not want to use the nurse at all, preferring to do it all themselves.
Communicate how the practice nurse can help with a consultation. This may include wound management or triaging walk in patients.
Nurses can also help identify patients who are eligible for care plans or additional items to increase revenue in your clinic.

A competent and well-trained practice nurse has the ability to connect health professionals and patients and influence the day to day running of a general practice and enable GPs to maximise the time they are spending with their patients ensuring they are providing the best possible care.

At Alecto Australia, we can facilitate your practice in getting the most out of your practice nurses as well as provide them with an opportunity to make a meaningful difference to your patients care. Contact us on 1800 604 332 to discuss how we can assist your practice.