Physician assistants and nurse practitioners as a usual source of care

This article published in The Journal of Rural Health used Wisconsin Longitudinal study data to identify characteristics and outcomes of patients who primarily see physician assistants (PAs) or nurse practitioners (NPs). Populations served most by PA/NPs tend to live in rural areas and have public insurance or no insurance coverage. They are also more likely to be women, younger, and have lower extroversion scores. There were few differences in utilization and no reported differences in difficulties/delays in care or outcomes compared to patients that primarily see doctors.