I am not a doctor.
KCH Blog Post Nurse practitioners (NP) have been part of Knox County’s medical landscape for nearly 25 years and nationally for even longer. Over the last decade, Knox Community Hospital has increasingly employed advanced practice nurses in a variety of clinical specialties and settings. You may encounter an NP in the emergency department or urgent care, in specialty care offices, while you are in the hospital, or you may see one routinely as your primary care provider. I am approaching 24 years of nursing practice, with nearly 10 of those years spent working in our community as an NP. Even still, I occasionally get questions about what I do, what my education is, what to call me, and, my personal favorite, when I will see the doctor. While these are never straight forward answers, I appreciate the opportunity to help educate my patients as to my professional practice and how I fit into their healthcare team. There are nurses with advanced degrees who do not hold the same licensure and...