National Nurse Practitioner Week celebrates more than 50 years of practice by these exceptional health care providers. Nurse practitioners (NPs) are expert clinicians with advanced education and clinical experience who provide primary, acute and specialty health care using a high-quality, cost-effective, patient-centered approach.
In the United States, there are approximately 222,000 nurse practitioners, and each year, another 20,000 NP students will graduate.
Photo: On hand to celebrate National Nurse Practitioner’s Week were 12 of the 23 UM CMG nurse practitioners who provide care for patients of UM Shore Regional Health: Doris Allen, Anna Antwi and Wendy Towers. Middle row: Bobbi Atkinson, Gail Shorter, Dale Jafari, Michele Williams and Brittany Cutler. Back row: Sharon Stagg, Brittany Krautheim, Penny Boyle and Lisa Jeffers.
At present, 21 nurse practitioners are providing care in 10 practices of University of Maryland Community Medical Group (UM CMG), providing a full range of services for UM Shore Regional Health patients. These services include ordering, performing and interpreting diagnostic tests, such as lab work and x-rays; diagnosing and treating acute and chronic conditions, such as diabetes and injuries; prescribing medications and other treatments; managing patients’ overall care; and education and counseling with an emphasis on healthy lifestyle choices.
“We take a holistic and collaborative approach to patient care that involves listening to our patients and their families, then creating an individualized medical treatment plan to optimize healing, wellness and function while considering the unique needs of each patient,” comments Lisa Jeffers, CRNP, CWS of UM CMG — Wound Care.
NPs must have a master’s degree in order to practice and many have doctoral degrees, such as a Doctorate in Nursing Practice (DNP). They are licensed and can prescribe medication and other treatments in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Patients whose primary care providers are NPs have fewer emergency room visits and shorter hospital stays, resulting in lower out-of-pocket costs,
The nurse practitioners serving UM Shore Regional Health are: Behavioral Health — Jill Burgholzer; Cardiology — Patricia Lancaster and Clare Ross; Diabetes & Endocrinology — Anna Antwi and Bobbi Atkinson: Family Medicine — Brittany Cutler, Lisa Hall, Marcia Reynolds and Shirley Seward; Neurology — Penny Boyle, Trisha Lemay and RahelAlemu; Cancer — Michele Williams; Pain Management — Diana Gail Shorter; Palliative Care — Sharon Stagg; Pediatrics — Ellen Spurry Christ and Marilyn Gall; Women’s Health — Jennifer Dyott, Dale Jafari, Michell Jordan and Brittany Krautheim; and Wound Care — Lisa Jeffers.
Additional information about services provided by Nurse Practitioners at UM CMG can be found at UMCMG.org.
As part of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), University of Maryland Shore Regional Health is the principal provider of comprehensive health care services for more than 170,000 residents of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s, and Talbot counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. UM Shore Regional Health’s team of more than 2,500 employees, medical staff, board members, and volunteers works with various community partners to fulfill the organization’s mission of Creating Healthier Communities Together.
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