Story by Lisa Johnson
Retrieved from https://www.msn.com/en-ca/health/other/i-can-t-sign-the-medical-alberta-nurse-practitioner-says-aish-rules-present-barrier-for-patients/ar-AA1mLVfY
A northern Alberta nurse practitioner says her efforts to help patients are being stifled by red tape, even as the provincial government promises a deal that will give her profession a bigger role in primary health care.
The compensation agreement is expected to open the door for nurse practitioners to open new independent primary care clinics as soon as this month in an effort to help get more Albertans access to primary care providers.
Linda Wonitoway-Raw works in the health centre on Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation, about 85 km northwest of Edmonton, and told Postmedia she’s the primary care provider for more than 500 patients. But she said it’s difficult for some of her patients to access doctors to complete medical forms for provincial funding.
Only a registered physician can sign off on a key medical report in the application process for the Alberta Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) program.
“Why would I have to get a doctor to sign a form for my own patient? So, that’s ridiculous. Number 2: there aren’t enough family physicians for people to go to,” Wonitoway-Raw said.
A nurse practitioner for 15 years, she estimated that she’s only seen about 10 patients who should qualify, but the rule is a big barrier for those few who need the vital support.
“Sometimes it’s temporary, but it’s funding for patients and, in most cases, it means secure housing,” she said, adding she has patients with everything from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, to neurological disorders, schizophrenia, complex post-traumatic stress disorder and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD).
“I have a number of adult FASD patients now that we’re getting assessed, and they should qualify for AISH, but I can’t sign the medical,” said Wonitoway-Raw.
“The government needs to change this, especially if they think nurse practitioners are going to run their own clinics,” she said, adding that she isn’t s peaking on behalf of the Nurse Practitioner Association of Alberta (NPAA).