I was asked to extend in Bradenton right away, but I told them I would let them know during my last month. Three months later, I finally agreed to extend and was surprisingly told that they no longer needed the help. I was shocked because one of the PCPs had just left and they didn’t have any new PCPs lined up until 7 months later. I called my boss to discuss and he told me that the Tampa Region had hired an internal float nurse practitioner. She was already seeing patients in Tampa and they planned on sending her to help in Bradenton at the end of January. He assured me that the decision wasn’t his, that regional leadership made the call, and he kept on fighting for me and insisting that they did need me. He said in their eyes, they are mostly concerned about finances so they figured why pay me when they are already paying a salary for the float NP.
I was offended that regional leadership thought I was easily replaceable. Like not only did I already have my own patient panel, but I already knew the majority of the patients that belonged to the PCP that just left. They used to be mine, and they are a fragile panel as they have gone between 4 Physicians over the past 2 years. If I had been able to stay, I could have seen those patients while waiting for them to get established with their permanent PCP. And the patients would have been relieved to see a familiar face.
But of course, regional leadership thinks they know best and haven’t even considered the need for patient retention. In all honesty, if they thought harder about the situation they could have ended the other locum NPs contract early since she is barely even seeing any patients. Now that’s what I call a waste of money.
I was so disappointed by the regional leadership. But they have never worked at my clinic and seen patients directly (they are physicians) so they have no clue what type of patient population we serve.
Job wise- I wasn’t desperate since I typically have a dozen clinics from this same company requesting my help at any given time. However, the next time the regional medical director came to the Bradenton clinic, I pulled him aside to chat. I told him how disappointed I was by their decision, and that I wasn’t planning on changing their mind since I have already committed to somewhere else. But I needed them to know what a mistake they made.
He said the decision has nothing to do with me and he thinks I am amazing and they appreciate me so much. He said the issue is that this clinic keeps using me as a “band aid”, and he wants the leadership at the clinic (including my boss) to be accountable for retaining their PCPs.
He said they plan on hiring 4 or 5 more permanent PCPs to help balance out the amount of complex patients, so that no one PCP feels overwhelmed. I told him that was easy to say but in the past 2 years that clinic has lost 10 providers. The main reason being the providers felt that the patients were too complex for them and felt overwhelmed, even if they were given a very slow ramp up schedule.
During our clinic PCP meetings afterwards, the medical director kept saying how in January, there were going to be 800 patients without a PCP. So, the current PCPs had to work together to take care of these patients while waiting for the new PCPs to start. I feel like they made it seem like I just decided to leave and didn’t care that my peers were about to be overwhelmed. I am not a quitter, and I think they know that. Also, one of the new providers is a nurse practitioner, so I wonder who will train him?
Several of the physicians pulled me aside to discuss what happened, and I told them the truth. Afterwards, every time the Regional Medical Director came to our clinic, one of them would tell him how disappointed they were with his decision not to extend me. I spoke to the Center Director of the Bradenton clinic about this, and he said my boss was so upset when they decided they didn’t need me to extend anymore. I figured he was, because besides him, I am the only PCP in that clinic that has worked for the company for more than 2 years. He also told me the Center Director of the new clinic I was going to had asked him about me. And he told him: “Sophia is like having 3 providers in 1”. I thought that was so nice, and it was refreshing to be seen.
At the end of the day, I believe everything happens for a reason. As I explained in my last post, that I wasn’t having a good experience, so I was probably going to end up working there being miserable if I stayed any longer. I just didn’t want to give up on my patients and my colleagues. Even the medical director of my new job told me the clinic I am going to will be more organized and laid back than the chaos I am probably used to. So I am looking forward to working at a stress-free clinic.
It was so disheartening to read how bad Bradenton did you. I’m sure the majority of your patients are elderly, and from observing my parents, they don’t do well with change. Especially if the new provider blows them off. My father passed last December. He had CHF and was in and out of the hospital. He was so aggravated by the lousy care he perceived he was receiving, that he stopped going to the 2 day post op visits.
My last gig was in TN. I loved it up there. The pts kept asking me if I was being treated well, because they would talk to docs if not! While up there, I had a, what I now know, was a stenosis flare caused by my L4/5 herniation.
I believe it was caused by using the stools so frequently. Getting up and down. The MAs liked the rooms to look the same, so they lowered them all the way. I’m 5’’9”, so there was a lot of bending on my part.
Bottom line, Barton presented me for May 1 in MA. I ended up having an L4/5 with fusion. A bone cyst and the stenosis was removed. Woke up – no sciatica- God is good!
Had 6 wk post op last week. No more brace, walk 1 mile /day – hah! No PT yet, they can be too aggressive. For some reason, the right side of my back, also with ‘severe stenosis’ began hurting so bad, I needed to use my walker again.
This is the reason you see so many older folks leaning over on shopping carts at Publix – it opens the stenotic area, so nerves have a tiny bit more space to course through.
I am in the process of doing the 3 hr CME for FL. I cannot figure out how to get my PNCB cert onto CEBroker.
At this point, I may do MA and bag it, but I doubt it. I love being a PNP., even if I am now in the ‘elderly’ category!!
Still drive my convertible with the music blasting, drink like a fish with friends. Then look in the mirror and scream, OMG, who’s the old lady!! Inside/outside don’t match!
Take care,
Karen
Aw sorry to hear about your dad. Yes I feel bad because one of my patient with a wound was almost healed when I left and I heard that now she has multiple large wounds on the leg due to poor care.
For the FL Ce Broker- when you click add CE, then click additional options, and there you can upload board certification to make you exempt for the RN CR requirements. Still will have to do the Ce for NP license though.
This is so frigging insane – we have 5+ licenses, and are board certified, but have to deal with old BS.
Originally, I was a hospital-based diploma grad, in 9/1976!!! The school is long out of business, but another school on Staten Island has my transcripts. Believe me, if it weren’t for Tineesha at Barton, I would have given up long ago.
They found the transcripts, but nothing saying I took the boards! Pointed out on the bottom of the transcripts, I was eligible to take the boards on February something. I was originally licensed as an RN in 5/1977. Back in the day, everyone taking RN boards took them on the same day in the entire country!!
To say nothing of the fact that I have NYS, NJ,RN licenses. I also have GA RN/APRN, FL RN/APRN, TN APRN AND MA RN/APRN. But let’s worry about something that predated everything since!! I went to Emory grad – they did not let me in without vetting my past.
I’m so pissed everytime I think about this!
This pales in comparison to your Bradenton fiasco. Especially dealing with your pt population. Clinic admins can be so short sighted, but I’ll bet they got a nice raise after the stress of dealing with staffing for COVID!
I’m supposed to do MA may-Aug in a pedi clinic near cape cod. I just turned 68 – still feel 18 – except on the outside!!!