What is a Nurse Practitioner?

Heidi Selzler-Echola is the medical director of Canopy Medical Clinic. She is an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN). This title is also referred to as a Nurse Practitioner (NP) or Certified Nurse Practitioner (CNP). 

What is an APRN? How does it compare to an M.D, D.O, PA or MA? It can be confusing! This link does a great job explaining the differences in the alphabet soup of medical credentials.

Physicians are invaluable when a person has a complex medical history, or needs complex, specialized care. However, most medical needs can be managed by an NP! According to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, over 50 years of research has shown that, "Patients under the care of NPs have higher patient satisfaction, fewer unnecessary hospital readmissions, fewer potentially preventable hospitalizations and fewer unnecessary emergency room visits than patients under the care of physicians."