Licensure of Health Professionals

Background

All fifty states have statutes that establish the requirement to be licensed to practice in a specific health profession (ie., medicine, dentistry, nursing, etc.). A professional must be licensed in the state in which s/he intends to practice. One aspect of the state statute defines the “scope of practice” for each specialty. In other words, the statute defines what type(s) of health care service the professional’s license permits them to do.

Assignment

You are the Credentialing Coordinator in the Medical Staff office at MU Health System. Dr. Rachel Livewell has just been appointed VP, Medical Affairs. She is new to your community and previously worked as a family practitioner in another state. Dr. Gomez has asked you to prepare a short memorandum (2 pages) that explains the scope of privileges for 3 licensed health care professions that are practicing at MU Health System.

In your memorandum identify your choice of one (1) state and three (3) different types health professions, other than medical doctor, licensed by your state. Compare each of the three health professions’ allowed scope of practice to that of a medical doctor. Your memorandum should illustrate that all licensed health care professionals, other than physicians, have limits on their scope of practice. Include a list of sources for your research at the end of your memorandum, as an appendix.