The Orthopaedic NP Workforce: Results From a Nationally Representative Survey

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Workforce Studies
• Nursing Practice
• Specialty Care

Background:

• The number of nurse practitioners (NPs) in orthopaedic practice is increasing.
• Limited data exists on the characteristics and practice patterns of the orthopaedic NP workforce.
• Understanding this growing specialty is crucial for healthcare workforce planning.

Purpose of the Study:

• To estimate the size of the orthopaedic NP workforce.
• To compare orthopaedic NPs with primary care NPs regarding demographics, education, experience, autonomy, and outcomes.
• To investigate how specialty practice and physician relationships influence NP role perception.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the 2018 National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses.
• Selected licensed, practicing orthopaedic and primary care NPs for analysis.
• Compared key workforce and practice variables between the two NP groups.

Main Results:

• Approximately 2,796 NPs identified orthopaedics as their specialty.
• Orthopaedic NPs spent 27% more time on care coordination than primary care NPs.
• Orthopaedic NPs were less likely to have their own patient panel and reported higher education utilization in physician collaboration.

Conclusions:

• Significant differences exist between orthopaedic and primary care NP roles and practice patterns.
• The current Consensus Model may need reform to better accommodate specialty NP practice.
• Collaborative physician relationships enhance orthopaedic NP role perception and education utilization.