Slate’s Matt Yglesias is one of the internet’s best writerson economics. His April22, 2013 post explains why nursing should experience increasing demand inthe near and long term, unlike many other “middle skilled” occupations. His take-away:
An aging country is going to demand more health care services. Acountry that’s politically committed to meeting the health care needs of thepoor is going to demand more health care services. A wealthier society is goingto demand more health care services.
His fellow Slate writer, Anna Reisman, who is also aphysician, wrote anApril 18 article in which she outlines the case for greater use of nurse practitionersand liberalized state licensing rules. She cites an Institute of Medicine study that shows similar patient outcomesregardless of whether the patient is diagnosed by a Nurse Practitioner orPrimary Care Physician.
Yglesias takes it a step further. He cites a recent study that concludes thatcomputer models do a better job at predicting lung cancer patients’ treatmentoutcomes than doctors.
Nurses are going to be more in demand. They are going to need to be fully versed intechnology and they are going to be even more responsible for patient outcomes. Yglesias says it best: “with digitalmedical technology improving, there’s going to be a broader and broader rangeof health care services that a well-trained nurse can provide without needingthe many extra years of expensive medical education required to churn out adoctor.”