Premier Health Continues to Expand APRN Practice

By Debbi Matosky, APRN, FNP-BC, Miami Valley Hospital

Greetings, colleagues!

Advanced practice registered nursing at Premier Health is growing like never before. Where do APRNs work?   Everywhere! System-wide, there are more than 350 APRN clinicians employed in every health care venue.

A growing group of APRNs staff Premier Health’s urgent care locations, expanding service to greater Dayton communities from Troy to Mason and several points in between. These clinicians provide front line treatment daily and after hours for a wide variety of minor health illnesses and injuries to meet the care needs of our community. These convenient sites also serve as an excellent source of referrals to our primary care and family practice offices, building a connection to Premier Health and supporting relationships built on quality care.

Primary care and specialty care offices also include APRN clinical practices. These exceptional providers help expand access to care for our aging patient population through the provision of much needed Medicare wellness checks.  Additionally, APRNs who provide primary care partner with their physician colleagues to promote wellness and disease prevention within our communities.

Fidelity Health Care also has a growing complement of APRN clinicians who are “meeting patients where they are” by conducting home care visits. This unique group of providers focuses on essential care provisions such as wound care, medication reviews, and assistance with chronic disease management. Cancer care and coordination of multidisciplinary care are also provided by this burgeoning group of providers.

And let us not forget our acute care hospital settings, in which a large majority of APRNs are working. These providers are not only adding to our direct care work force in both critical and acute care settings; they are driving quality initiatives that improve consistency and outcomes in the care we provide. Evidence-based practice is a hallmark of these efforts, and APRNs are coming prepared to take on the challenge!

Peggy Mark, Premier Health chief nursing officer, has been working diligently to build an APRN leadership team devoted to actively moving our organization’s APRN practice forward. Our APRNs are now represented by a system-wide Advanced Practice Provider Leadership Group made up of delegates from all care settings. This group meets monthly to provide direction and innovation for APRN integration into our health care system.

You are encouraged to reach out to this group and express your thoughts and ideas to help make Premier Health the preferred employer for APRNs in the greater Dayton area. Angela Mormon is the current chair. Melissa Peterangelo is the co-chair. 

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