With a dedication to health and well-being, nurse practitioners help to increase access to care while addressing health inequities in some communities across the region.
Nurse practitioners are registered nurses with advanced education at the master’s level. This advanced education provides them with knowledge and skills to screen for illness, diagnose, prescribe and manage patient care as a sole practitioner or as part of a multidisciplinary team.
Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority currently employs 26 nurse practitioners, including full-time and part-time positions. In addition, the health authority recently launched a casual nurse practitioner float pool to help bridge gaps in communities where there are vacancies for primary care providers.
Nurse practitioners in the float pool are flexible in their assignments. They can “float” or move between different geographic areas, health centres and primary care clinics within the Interlake-Eastern region. This flexibility is especially valuable in settings where patient needs are high and access to primary care providers is limited.
The float pool recruits nurse practitioners with varied career backgrounds, including some with experience working in northern First Nations and for tribal councils.
Ann Nzereum works for Interlake-Eastern Regional Health Authority and Southeast Resource Development Council, which provides health care and other services to eight First Nations. She’s a nurse practitioner who has been involved with the float pool for about seven months.
As a result, Nzereum has worked in multiple different settings, including Ashern, Eriksdale Primary Care, Pinaymootang Health Centre, Pine Falls Primary Care Clinic, Black River Health Centre and Hollow Water Health Centre.
“The nurse practitioner float pool model allows health-care organizations to optimize their workforce, ensuring they can provide quality care across different geographical locations. In regions where there may be shortages of health-care professionals in specific specialties or units, a float pool can help address staffing gaps and ensure that patient care needs are met,” she said.
“Float nurse practitioners contribute to maintaining and improving the quality of patient care by applying their skills across various clinical areas and adhering to best practices in each specialty. Their ability to integrate into different health-care teams enhances collaboration and communication skills since they work with diverse groups of professionals.”
Providing virtual care is also part of this model, offering a flexible way to ensure health-care providers are available when and where they are most needed. To start, the client makes an appointment to visit a health-care centre or clinic. When they arrive, they’re checked into a consultation room where a computer is set up with Microsoft Teams. The client receives an explanation of how the appointment will work followed by a virtual introduction to the nurse practitioner. The clinic’s administrative assistants will print any required paperwork, such as lab requisitions, and provide it to the patient after the appointment ends.
As a nurse practitioner in the float pool, Nzereum appreciates how the opportunity has bolstered her skills and versatility.
“I enjoy the exposure to different clinical settings and specialties. I also like that I have a flexible schedule and a dynamic work environment,” she said. “I have been able to develop strong problem-solving skills given that I have to deal with different patient populations and clinical scenarios.”
The health authority continues to recruit health-care workers, including casual nurse practitioners to join the float pool. From April 1 to Dec. 31, 2023, the nurse practitioner float pool provided 57 days of service, and it’s currently being expanded to provide more services.
