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An investigation of the international literature on nurse practitioner private practice models
Author(s) -
Currie J.,
Chiarella M.,
Buckley T.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
international nursing review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.84
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1466-7657
pISSN - 0020-8132
DOI - 10.1111/inr.12060
Subject(s) - private practice , cinahl , thematic analysis , systematic review , reimbursement , nursing , legislation , medline , grey literature , health care , medicine , family medicine , political science , qualitative research , psychological intervention , sociology , social science , law
Aim To investigate and synthesize the international literature surrounding nurse practitioner ( NP ) private practice models in order to provide an exposition of commonalities and differences. Background NP models of service delivery have been established internationally and most are based in the public healthcare system. In recent years, opportunities for the establishment of NP private practice models have evolved, facilitated by changes in legislation and driven by identification of potential patient need. To date, NP private practice models have received less attention in the literature and, to the authors' knowledge, this is the first international investigation of NP private practice models. Design Integrative literature review. Method A literature search was undertaken in O ctober 2012. Database sources utilized included M edical L iterature A nalyses and R etrieval ( MEDLINE ), the C umulative I ndex of N ursing and A llied H ealth Literature ( CINAHL ), ProQuest, Scopus and the Cochrane Database of S ystematic R eviews ( CDSR ). The grey literature was also searched. The following M edical S ubject He adings ( MeSH ) and search terms used both individually and in combination included nurse practitioners; private practice; joint practice; collaboration; and insurance, health and reimbursement. Once literature had been identified, a thematic analysis was undertaken to extract themes. Results Thirty manuscripts and five publications from the grey literature were included in the final review. Private practice NP roles were identified in five countries, with the majority of the literature emanating from the USA. The thematic analysis resulted in the identification of five themes: reimbursement, collaborative arrangements, legislation, models of care and acceptability. Conclusion Proportionally, there are very few NPs engaged in private practice internationally. The most common NP private practice models were community based, with NPs working in clinic settings, either alone or with other health professionals. Challenges in the context of legislation and financial reimbursement were identified in each country where private practice is being undertaken.