Nurse practitioners and physicians: patients' perceived health and satisfaction with care

The advent of managed care has created changes in the health care environment and nurse practitioners have found a need to evaluate their care. Perceived health and patient satisfaction were measured in a multiethnic sample of 160 clinic patients, ages 18 to 89, in a managed care setting. Results of the Medical Outcomes Study SF-20 and the Nurse Practitioner Satisfaction Instrument indicated no statistically significant difference in perceived health and satisfaction with care, whether the care was given by a nurse practitioner or a primary care physician. The findings warrant further study and may mean that nurse practitioners placed in managed care environments can be expected to perform as effectively as they have in non-managed care environments.