“Nurse Practitioners are DUMB AND I HATE THEM” | A Doctor's Uncensored Take 

Im a paramedic and ER Tech.... i know where i stand in the healthcare hierarchy. I just dont appreciate when everyone looks down on us. We all strive to make a difference in our patients lives and we also suffer our own tragedies

As a physician, I would say we ALL have to know our limits, strengths and weaknesses, not point fingers based on the initials after our name. In our group, the PA who worked in a GI group, is better at hepatic disease than I am. So she gets those patients. The name of the game is the PATIENT.

Im a nursing student and a server. And I served a table of paramedics. I was excited to tell them I was studying nursing and they told me to please not be mean to paramedics when I become a nurse. I was so surprised that this was an actual thing and that nurses were mean to paramedics. Im really surprised by the hostility between health care workers. Its disappointing.

Thank you for this post! One of the primary reasons I no longer use my NP license is because profit-driven practice managers continually pushed me to practice beyond my ability and outside of my specialty so they could “serve” more patients. These practice models also did not lend themselves to allowing me to get an MD’s opinion when I was clinically in over my head.

I’m a nurse Practitioner. I don’t think I am or pretend to be a doctor. The most important thing to me is: know what I know. Know what I don’t know. Be honest with patients about that. And know when to refer.”

I would like to premise this by saying I respect EVERY healthcare worker. I was unfortunately in an abusive relationship, and after a pretty rough situation, I went to the ER to have part of my tongue sewn back together. The ER doctor was discharging me as a Nurse(RN) came in and refused him. The doc was furious, but luckily she noticed I had some weakness-as I was getting dressed to leave, mind you-and she demanded a CT. The doc refused to order it, and she basically begged for an X-ray. The doc agreed, only to prove her wrong. I had 5 fractured vertebrae from C-6 to T-4(T-1 escaped somehow..) and 9 broken ribs. Thank god for that nurse, and thank God for the doctor, before I left the X-ray room he was at my side and had already called a neurosurgeon. He was absolutely able to admit his mistake and he thanked the nurse in front of me for saving my life.

Love this Doctor. I’m an NP and I work in collaboration with an amazing surgeon. I’m not a MD, and she’s not a RN/NP, but we work as a team to provide good well rounded care for our patients.

How did doctors all of a sudden become too busy to see their own patients. I am 72 and can remember when the doctor actually came to your house. Remember housecalls..you probably don't. You do all the research to find a doctor that you think is capable and go to your appointment and see a nurse practitioner. Doctor are going the way of the dinosaur or a magicians assistant, you employ them ....then they DISAPPEAR.

I'm a Nurse Practitioner working full-time for 12 years...I completely agree with practicing within the scope of your training and working as a team to provide great care to all of our patients!

This entire debate seems so logical to me. Even amongst physicians, there are varying levels of expertise. Could you imagine a primary care physician insisting on performing a heart transplant on his patient, simply because he believed he was as good as a cardiac surgeon? It's insane. The problem is ego, and we all need to check it at the door, and put the patients best interest first.

I’ve been a NP for 25+ years and wouldn’t even consider working independently without a physician to consult with. If I wanted to be viewed as a physician, I would have gone to medical school. I started with a BSN and then wanted to advance my skills as a NURSE. I’ve been very content, and supported, by the physicians I’ve worked with as a pediatric Hospice and palliative care NP. I wanted this choice because I wanted more time to be able to raise my children. The physicians I’ve work with haven’t been able to have that “off switch” like I am able to do. My husband was a paramedic and I always said that he surpassed all my skills when it came to starting a IV or provide critical crisis care. We should be “complimenting” each other’s skills (as team members) and not trying to compete and/or insult. Great video. Thanks! I’m glad RU-vid placed this on my recommended page. I’ve subscribed.

makes sense. "stay in your lane." dont pretend you know what you haven't learned. be the best md. be the best np. be the best paramedic.

I'm a NP and totally agree. I know my limitations and I work alongside my MDs as a team. Don't be an asshole is the perfect way to put it.

So as a family doctor even I know my scope of practice. Just because I'm a doctor doesn't mean I'm going to go do a surgery but I will recognize when people need that consult ;)

A Nurse Practitioner underdosed me on my thyroid meds by 30mg for 4 years!!! When I finally, 4 years too late, went in with a bullish attitude armed with the information to advocate for myself and raised my voice, she yelled at me saying, "I'm not a doctor and I don't know this stuff." She sent me to an endocrine Dr that immediately upped my dose 30mg. I think it has to do with hospitals here just wanting to pay the lowest salaries possible and they do not care that it compromises care.

Medical doctors misdiagnosed me for three years until a Nurse practitioner correctly diagnosed me. In my opinion, nurse practitioners are much more attuned with the patient and are able to care for them holistically. Medical doctors aren’t able to do that. From my own experience as a patient and from what I see in the ICU I work in as a nurse.

This must be a big city thing. The doctor’s out here love NPs because it’s more rural and the NPs are complementary to the MD.

I’m an RN, and I’m a firm believer that NPs and MDs are different- but both important. No NP I know feel they’re like doctors. In fact a good friend of mine has had to go to her boss many times because she felt she was being expected to practice with patients who were too acute for her level of training, and that they need to be seen by an MD. I think in nursing, no matter the level of training, should be aware of the scope of practice for their license, and practice in that scope.

The term "Doctor" is misused in our country. Doctor literally refers to the level of education earned. I think we should get in the habit of using more accurate terms, like physician. Of course getting the general populace to play along would be hard.

I have been working for 7 years as a NP ,the bullying is real ,not just from the MDs but also the way the NPs are demeaned by the practice managers and idiotic staff saying “the real doctor won’t be available till next week ,that is just a NP “ . You are right ,it’s the insecure people who do that . I am grateful for MD opinions and consults that I seek for very complicated patients. But I am fully aware of my contribution to patient care .

Levels of care mean a division of labor. Np's are another layer of the healthcare continum. Team work makes the dream work.

I am a PA - i am not a doctor - i dont want to be a doctor- i enjoy my role as supporting cast. I help doctors be better doctors. I correct patients if they call me doctor. The IQ statement is stupid - I was accepted to med school.

Really appreciate this perspective! I’m going for my BSN right now and eventually want to be an NP. Looking forward to being part of a collaborative healthcare team. I 100% agree that NP’s aren’t the same as doctors, but are an important piece of helping patients.

I fell on this episode by accident and am so glad that I did. Z, you said so many things that I've said in the past. Thank you! I've been a paramedic for 27 years, a nurse for 7 and now am in NP school. I TURNED DOWN A MED SCHOOL ACCEPTANCE! At the time it was a tough choice that didn't fit in with so many things going on in my new family. My family is older now, and working as an NP is what I've chosen. I have always been terrified of people in their chose field not admitting that they still have something to learn. They don't know what they don't know. Some of the best physicians I've worked with have been happy to have me on their team and some of the worst discounted my contribution. Health care is better for EVERYONE when the team concept is acknowledged with people consulting each other for a better outcome. I hope to be an amazing NP working with amazing counterparts. Thanks for a great episode!

Totally agree. I've been a NP for 25 yrs and I have no desire to be a doctor! I function within a team and love it! And you're right - that wanker's comments are a reflection of his own level of pathetic insecurities!

I’m a nurse, and my health provider is an NP. I saw her originally out of necessity, but it was the best thing that ever happened to me. That holistic approach you talked about is working for me. I’m getting healthier, and so thankful for her knowledge and skill. As for Paramedics and EMTs, I am so totally in awe of what they do. I will never save as many lives as some of the ones I know, and they totally deserve to be paid more! I’ve never witnessed the mistreatment probably because several nurses I work with moonlight as EMS, and they would never put up with it.

This made me feel so much better. I’m a freshman nursing student, I’m aiming for Psych NP. All I’ve ever wanted to do is help people. It hurts so much to see people on the internet demean NPs, even going as far as calling them low IQ. It’s disheartening, thank you for this video. It means so much coming from an MD :)

I actually saw an NP when I was living in the rural south and she was always quick to correct when someone called her doctor. She also worked along aside a doctor but I never met the MD.

I am a proud nurse practitioner. I am not a physician. I went that route because I didn’t think I had medical school in me. I also collaborate with a team of other NPs, PAs, and my surgeon. I know what I am capable of, and so does everyone else. One of my jobs is to treat patients, but to also protect the other members of my team. Let’s not forget the first rule of being a doctor. Not to do no harm. But to not piss off the nurses.

I'm training to be an DNP, and I think the biggest weakness of any practitioner (DNP or MD) is not knowing what we don't know. Having a big head and not consulting others with more or different clinical experience kills patients. Arrogance makes people stupid.

I work as a paramedic in an ED that utilizes a lot of NPs and PAs who all do an amazing job. In my many (well, 3 or 4) years in the ED, I don't think I've heard any NPs or PAs calling themselves "doctor". Now patients will call them doc, but I think they let it go uncorrected because in that moment it's fairly unimportant given the things that brought them to the ED.

I’m an NP but started as a “lowly” paramedic. Thank you for addressing this on behalf of everyone in healthcare!

Even when I'm done with my NP I'd prefer to have a MD to learn on and bounce things off of and learn and adapt. I agree with y'all. Let's get along and be a team.

Even this video is 5yrs old, everything covered in it still applicable at the present. As a very new NP who is practicing in adult primary care for over a year now, I still need my supervising physician to assist me with complex/complicated patients. However, most of the time, I find it hard for them to really help me like basically ignoring me so my last resort is to use uptodate and/or call a seasoned PA or NP for help. I believe that if collaboration needs to be structured between PA/NP and a Physician, practices/offices/corporations should stop letting the mid-level practitioners/APPs be on their own in an office with the so-called "collaborating physician" is in another location or hundred miles away. Kudos to this big private practice that models collaborative relationship very well, where a physician is always in the same office as the APPs- and they will run the office with at least one physician in the office. I hope all practices are doing this. In fact, I feel safer when there's an MD/DO in the office with me. As of the "doctor" terminology, in my own experience, even just for over a year being an NP, I'm about to give up correcting my patient and educate them that I'm not a doctor, and they can just call me with my first name. But most of them just cant stop calling me "doctor". What can I do? When I arrive in the office first thing in the morning with patients in the lobby waiting, and they greet me "good morning doctor", should I always correct them? There's even some patients who responds like "but you are doing the same thing when a patient comes in the office" and I will just like say "yes, but doctors are DOs/MDs". There's one even argued, how about those Doctor in Psychology who wants to be addressed as "DRs". I think the issue here is the "bad seed" as what has been mentioned in the video, as well as insecurities. Also, it is concerning for some schools who does not require bedside RN experience prior entering the NP program. I believe the original logic of creating the NP profession is the fact that it is based on the actual bedside/nursing experience, and hone it, use the nursing model plus this experience to the diagnosing and treating part of the healthcare delivery. I hope this will change in the near future. Also, NPs should practice on the specialty they were trained for. Acute NP should practice in the acute settings (There's a lot of Family NPs who work as an Acute NP), a Primary Mental Health NP should practice in psychiatry (There are some FNPs who practice as psych NPs), and so on. NP program is specifically designed according to specialty: Womens health, Midwifery, Anesthesiology, Adult-Gerontology, Family, ER, Acute, etc. This is where PA program is different, since they are trained in different specialty with their PA program.

Cardiac RN here and I would like to shine the spotlight on another part of this conversation that I think was missed entirely. The anesthesiologist (and I'd hate to stand up for someone who sounds like an a-hole) said the NP doesn't correct the patients when they call them doctor - he didn't say they call themselves doctor. That brings me to what I deal with on my unit when I walk into a room and my patient said someone wast just in their room talking to them about something like a procedure or their diagnosis and it could've been any consult MD, any of the NPs, the cleaning techs, nutrition, or our floor techs/PCAs. By the process of elimination, the conversation usually goes like this: "Someone was just in here? Were they wearing green scrubs (our PCA/floor tech colors)? No? Did they have on a white coat (an intern/resident/fellow most likely, but not always an attending, consult, or NP/PA)." The process continues until I can figure it out or I give up, because we all know physicians for SOME REASON are free from having a dress code in the hospital (which I think is stupid, honestly because it causes a lot of confusion to everyone and is a security risk). IF the person in the room was wearing scrubs that weren't my color or the color of the PCA/techs, but spoke to them about their procedure, they were most likely a doctor or np/pa. THE DIFFERENCE TO A PATIENT is none. We don't learn about NPs and PAs in high school. We don't learn about our healthcare in our education systems. The general public doesn't know what a normal blood pressure or blood sugar reading range is, so how do you expect anyone to know the difference in roles between a nurse practitioner, physician assistant, and physician? All roles can enter medicines, all ask the same questions, all get consents and assess the patients, all do rounds, and explain to the patient what is going to happen. To the patient, the role of their healthcare provider, regardless of the title, is whoever that one person is they see the most rounding in their room - and I can tell you, it's going to be the NP or PA rounding more often than the MD. The patients often slip and call the NP or PA their doctor and I would correct them and tell them it's their NP or PA but correcting patients and educating them on the difference when you can't even educate them on their meds or their illness is a bit overreaching. They don't care about the job title. They really mean "whoever the fuck is my healthcare provider rounding on me, because you all switch every shift and it's too complicated to keep track of what all of your names are." They don't even get MY name right, and it's WRITTEN IN FONT 200 IN FRONT OF THEM ON THE BOARD. Practically, that's it in a nutshell. The NP the anesthesiologist is talking about is probably just tired of correcting her patients. She laughs when they call her doctor because she's probably told them she's an NP a billion fucking times and they STILL don't know the difference and don't give a damn and use the word doctor in place of NP because it's easier to say. No one prefers saying Physician over Doctor because Doctor is easier to say. Honestly. The NP isn't trying to piss off the a-hole, but he obviously has no idea what it's like talking to patients, and why would he besides putting them to sleep or getting consents (if he doesn't send the CRNA to do that, too)? What I'm trying to reiterate here is that it's not a MD vs NP or PA thing, it's a lack of education in the general population on what the role differences are and that no one cares when they're sick and in the hospital and if there was a way to say "my healthcare provider" in any simpler form that sounded easier to say than the word "doctor," they would use it. I know I get tired of correcting the patients on which doctor or np is which and who is on what team. I grab my scrubs and plainly say I AM YOUR ONLY NURSE. NO ONE WEARING THESE COLORS LIKE ME SHOULD BE IN YOUR ROOM TAKING CARE OF YOU TODAY BUT ME. That is how I tell the hardheaded patients who their nurse is when they don't understand for the 3rd time who I am or why I am writing my name on their board, lol.

NP here. This is an amazing exploration of the issues. Thank you for a thorough, albeit ranting, perspective on this complicated topic. I found myself nodding and smiling repeatedly. I love my NP colleagues. I love my physician colleagues. I love to consult and explore cases with wise physicians. So glad you decided to move on this topic and take on the multitude of facets contained within this unfortunate professional war. I am happy to report that in my 34 yrs as an NP I have never worked with an NP who claims to be a physician equivalent. The world needs us all for what we bring to the patient.

I have had good nurse practitioners and PAs. I have also had a PA tell me that its not possible to overdose on Vit D (WRONG). I have had good doctors and I have also had bad ones. I had a Pulmonary doctor tell me there is no such thing as cold induced asthma. (ALSO WRONG). I think it is dangerous and common in the medical field for clinicians to be overly confident in their knowledge and when coupled with the arrogance (not listening to their patients), can lead to dangerous situations. No matter what their scope, education or experience.

As a nurse, I totally feel like you put everything eloquently ♡ wish we all understood the importance of each person's role in the Healthcare team, what our scope of practices entail and the fact that we are a TEAM.

I just had a very negative experience with a nurse practitioner. I had no idea she was not a medical doctor. She called herself a neurologist not an APRN. This person waited until I was in her office to inform me that she was cancelling the appointment! Then I got a text from her office three minutes before my appointment time. We parted ways with no resolution. There was not attempt to fix things. No more techs for me.

I love this commentary. As an RN and a new NP who went to an NP/PA program where our program director was an MD in this particular program, I actually gained a lot of appreciation for the collaboration between MD's and NP's. I have seen the attitude that nurses have and it's definitely not helpful. I think it is best that at the end of the day, that we work together for better patient outcomes instead of trying to fight each other. Thank you for bringing this hot topic into light Z-dawg! Hoping and praying for a healthcare system that focuses on collaborative care!

I have seen the hell of med school, all the tests, studying, late nights, early mornings, Doctors rock, nurses rock and all the specialties, sub fields and care givers that support them rock!

I’m a PA and I love what I do! Love working with physicians and recognize their tremendous efforts in their education and training as well as NPs. All play a role and to assume roles that are out of your scope of expertise is dangerous regardless of your position in healthcare.

I am a PA, worked in the ER @ night. I got so tired of explaining my education, almost everyone would say doctor so I gave up. At night, when crisis after crisis would happen, I would show up and help where I could. Mostly doctors with lacerations, which took a lot of time, so I became a tailor. PA’s need a sign off on some drugs, but trust is everything in the ER. NP’s are fine. I trained with NP’s and PA’s. NP now requires a MA. The best way to learn is the old, see one, do one, teach one. You should either call out this anesthesia guy or forget about him.

I always tell everyone that we are all doing the same job, just different parts of it. All the parts together add up as a whole.

Thanks zdoggmd!!! Im an adult acute NP student at upenn and thank you for laying out the lay of the land, encouraging all of us to work together more!! I agree with everything you say, and will start to use your arguments more in conversations about this with my classmates and colleagues. I am embarrassed to say that this negativity goes both ways - there are a number of NPs who equate themselves to MDs, and who attack physicians in the same unproductive way - it’s not right, this type of language needs to be changed.

A sincere PA or NP are way more valuable and beneficial for most patients than an arrogant MD

forget being a doctor or NP I want to be a millionaire! 😬

Patients die from not working together- that's the bottom line- a failed patient is the fault of both professionals. We are all human and things are missed, we should be working as a team to support each other to provide the best care for patients!

Disgusting, I left my terrible physician for a Family Nurse Practitioner and he is amazing. He doesn't pretend to be a doctor.. He is amazing, caring, and stays within his scope of practice!

In NP school right now. Love my doctors and totally agree with you Z!

I’m a retired healthcare provider, my concern, my whole career was why (in my hospital) did it take 3 to 6 months to orient a newly graduated RN? What’s wrong with nursing schools that they can’t put out a product that’s ready to go with a couple of weeks of orientation.

As an NP for the past 7 years and now in private practice, I’ve seen how MDs degrade NPS and visa versa. Even with my success as an NP and now preparing for my MCAT, not because I am not proud to be an NP but because that was my original plan and dream to be a physician. However I find it very sad and just plan disrespectful that MDs are almost always referred to as Dr. so and so. However a Nurse Practitioner is almost always not acknowledged at NP so and so. It’s Bob, Mary, SAM. Some people don’t even know their doctor’s first name, all because they are DOCTORS, they get that respect, whether qualified or not. An first year resident will get more respect than an experienced NP. We all deserve respect, NP, PA, DO, and MDs.

I have been a NP for 23 years. After so many years of practice I don't ask for much help. But every now and then I collaborate with my MD and sometimes he knows what it is and sometime he tells me to send them to the specialist. I have had the best mentors, who empower me, give me autonomy and understand that if I need help, I will always ask. And this is what I tell my students. If you don't know, say so, ask your M.D., learn, and move on.

Do you have a podcast??? This is amazing, you're hilarious while being so well articulated. Health care providers for the win!

Doctors treat diseases...nurses treat patients. I've been an RN for over 20 years. I work in an ICU at a level 1 trauma hospital. I've been a nurse longer than any of our NP's, but I know my scope and my place and totally respect their further education than my own. Some of them have their doctorate in nursing, but they NEVER EVER allow patients to call them Doctor. But, there are times they will come to ask me about something from my years of experience and that lets me know they respect me too. Our teams work very well together. I also know NP's and PA's who are quite scary because, as you said, they don't know what they don't know!

Love you! I’m an NP and we all need to be a team. We are all better together as a team! We all should be taking care of the patients! Glad you are so realistic!

Very important conversation. I am an FNP student about to graduate and have trained with MDs, DOs and NPs in my program. Hands down the MDs AND DOs have a depth of clinical knowledge that NPs do not. I completely agree that NPs can be excellent providers but must recognize limitations of their knowledge and ask questions, seek knowledge and refer out.

I love working with NPs. They’re great! In a busy ED department it really helps the work load :) we work as a team with our NPs and it’s great! Let’s all work together to give patients the best care we can give :D

About to get attacked and I say this as a Mom of an MSN, when a NP becomes a DNP, they still aren't called "Doctor" unless in a University setting. They don't have the same training and they know it. That said, I've had 3 heart attacks, lupus, factor 5, I'm complex and it's always been Nurse Practitioners who diagnose the weird stuff and give me relief because they have epic hands on, think outside the box, and have more of a whole body approach.

DNP here, and I always find it entertaining when MDs and NPs debate whether to call DNP prepared NPs "doctor." I find it entertaining because I'm in the psychiatric specialty, where even MDs aren't taken seriously as "doctors." On the list of what I care about, my patients are at the top. Insecure clinicians with fragile egos who need to be called "doctor" are not even on the list.

What more to say? I've worked my way through the medical hierarchy to a place that I am happy with. I have been the EMT who was told to just go drive, the paramedic who tried to describe a patients home to an RN that dismissed me as an ambulance driver, the nurse who has had been asked by a doctor "so what do you want to do, because I don't see a problem", and the NP who has had the discussion with a PA about how we're not doctors and cannot complain that MDs/DOs get paid so much more than we do. She couldn't believe that I would never feel comfortable working in a rural ER without a physician being available/present. I've seen the shit we can give each other and those who we consider "inferior" because their training is different. I am happy and content as an NP. I take care of the patients that I can and I hand off those that I cannot. I ask for help when something doesn't fit the picture I was expecting to see and I am confident when I recognize something I've seen before. Because of this I couldn't care less what any dipshit doctor has to say about my level of licensure or training. That's not to say I am not open to learning more or to constructive criticism so I can better take care of my patients. I am always looking for the next thing I can experience or learn. I have found that many of the physicians I work with are also looking for that next thing that can learn. We all are here to do the best we can taking care of patients. Instead of focusing on our small differences we should embrace everyone at the highest level of their training because there are more than enough patients to go around for all of us. Asshole doctors can try to dismiss and belittle NPs all they want, it really doesn't matter. NPs are a thing and we're not going away. The public is on our side, the majority of state legislatures are on our side. That isn't to say we shouldn't be having conversations about scope of practice and what NPs can and can't do with or without collaboration, but dismissing us outright will likely leave an asshole doctor away from the table when that discussion is had.

Oh good lord, this is funny to me. I’m in NP school right now, and if a doc thinks I’m stupid so what. My caring will be patient centered. Best way to earn respect is be good at what you do and I plan on just that. This stuff is childish.

Great video. Love the emphasis on the importance of the collaborative nature between these professionals in order to practice the best medicine. And you're so right about how a lot of these divisive comments bring out the worst in people - the most negative, least confident docs and NPs. Especially when people can hide behind anonymity. Thanks for making this video!

You have a great outlook for the system and everyone involved. Keep up the great work! People like you create a better future. I hope to work with more Doctors like you!

Thank you for saying this!!! I'm a PA student and some of the stuff I read online regarding MD/DO vs NP/PA can be super discouraging at times....

I love the ending to this video. "They love it when we fight". My doctor colleagues are amazing and I think the world of them. They do things I cant even imagine doing. I'm a nurse, not a doctor. I know what I know, but I also know I don't know a lot. Doctors have illuminated so many interesting things that I had no idea about and that has made me a better nurse.

I'm glad to hear a balanced conversation here. I'm a nurse practitioner. I have a doctorate. I do not introduce myself as a doctor. In a medical setting, that would be misleading. I know I did not receive the same number of hours of clinical training as a doctor. I wish I had received more. I gained a lot of experience after I started working. I work in a clinic where we address a narrow set of patient conditions, and I am very comfortable addressing these. When I come across less common issues, that I am not comfortable addressing, I refer, or consult our medical director (a physician). There are many simple procedures and common conditions that an NP can easily handle. We contribute, but don't replace physicians. In my NP program I had instructors who promoted the idea that NPs are equivalent to physicians. I never agreed with that. 1000 hours of clinical training provided me with a baseline of knowledge and experience that I could build on once I became an NP. Anyone who thinks that you will have the same breadth and depth of knowledge as a physician after 1000 hours of clinical training is fooling themselves.

Love it! Can't we all just get along, do our part, be good seeds, appreciate each other and work as a team.

Yes, I feel the same. I want to be a neonatal nurse practitioner and I just want to have a larger scope of practice. I would never compare a two year program to medical school, if I wanted to be a doctor I would have but I don’t want to know everything I just want to be able to be better able to help my patients. Doctors are on another level not to say there aren’t amazing nurse practitioners like I plan to be lol

@ZDoggMD D to the Jizzle! You crack me up bro! You are my spirit animal bro! Facts, honesty, hating on stupidness. All of my values wrapped up in one vlog.

Zdogg I love how you address healthcare as a team! Our priorities are patients not who is better at providing care! 💕

Thank god, you’re not the one deciding if there are NPs or not and what they are allowed to do. I am a NP, specialised in infectious diseases. How many patients are referred to our department by lets say family doctors, and primarily treated wrong? They are not specialised in infectious diseases. It’s fine that they do mistakes. That’s why specialisation is great. But it’s not important to be treated by a MD or NP. The key is to be treated by someone that knows what he/she is doing. I don’t know what’s your motivation. But the way you do it is terrible, and absolutely destructive. Just terrible.

Doctors and nurses have different roles in the healthcare system and can't function without each other. Both should be respected. I'm with Tom's wife. I want to be a nurse, not a doctor. They are different things.

I work in the hospital with tremendous people of every discipline. It's all about humility and compassion.

Hands down realest talk I’ve heard in a long time. Definitely a sub!!

My biggest problem is everytime I go to a specialist now I never see the Drs anymore. I went to a Neurosurgeon and they scheduled me again but with no Dr after a MRI. She wanted me to go to physical therapy before I even got my test back. This is total BS. Where are the Drs. They only are at the office 2 days a week too.

Interestingly enough, the public often think nurses are some kind of “stunted doctors”. I often explain to people that nurses and doctors have very different training and roles in medical care. We work together to take care of patients. BTW, I agree with you. I have tremendous respect and appreciation for physicians. Especially the ones I currently work with. They also respect my skills and what value I bring to the patients.

Same issues between scrub nurses and Operating room techs

I’ve been an NP for 14 years. We practice independently in Kentucky. I know my limitations and when I need to collaborate with other members of the healthcare team, which include doctors, pharmacists, nurses and specialists. I have known doctors that collaborate with other MDs. No one knows everything. MDs would be smart to treat us with respect as we refer a lot of our patients to MDs in the specialty roles. I’ve had some doctors refer patients to our GI practice and I’m amazed at their lack of basic work-up before referring. My son is in medical school and he respects me as an NP. He would never call me dumb. I had a physician who said that before long NPs will be taking the lead in primary care. I have taught my son to respect nurses, aides, techs, etc. I have never said I’m a doctor, and I correct my patients. I am a PhD candidate. Spoiler alert: MDs don’t own the title doctor.

@ 16:56, Thank you Dr. Z! I am a Paramedic - working in Las Vegas and am applying to PA school! I’ve worked in 911 and in the ER as a Tech to get better medical experience. I truly appreciated being part of an interdisciplinary team - MD’s, NPs, PAs, RNs & Paramedics - truly the best medical environment you can imagine as each contributes their own expertise for optimal patient care. Thanks so much for your comments to us at 16:56! ☺️

Amazing content. Not taking a side, explaining it from a logical unbiased standpoint. Subscribed right after you said you will not defend NPs just for the sake of defending. Looking forward to future content

CNA, studying for my RN. Thanks for articulating the "lol what about med school?" response

I have always enjoyed your videos. Thank you always for the information and laughs. As a person who has been in medicine for over 30 years as an EMT, ER RN, and nurse practitioner. YOU are SO correct! I do believe everything you have said here today. I do believe, even now, after all these years, I love having a very knowledgeable physician that I collaborate with to give the best care to my, his, and our patients. I think we all (RN, NP, MD, DO, PA, EMT, Medics) start with knowledge and our experience makes us better clinicians. I believe spending our time lifting each other up and educating others will allow us all to give the best care.

I'm an NP with 20 years experience in urgent care and ER medicine and I AGREE 100% with ZDogg. I AM NOT a physician and I absolutely think NPs should be in collaboration with physicians to practice. That being said, I've also had physicians consult with me on things. I've also seen MANY new NPs who think because they have a doctorate that they're all that and they don't know shit in many cases.

I agree with a team approach. Research shows competence of NP Primary Care Providers time and time again. I’m an FNP student and I’m not gunning for any Physicians job, don’t call me Doctor, don’t call me Physician. Just tell me what’s wrong with you and I’ll deal with it to the best of my ability.

I’m a thoracic surgery nurse practitioner and I 100% agree with everything ZDogg said. 100%

Thank you so much! When I read the title of the video, I must admit I wasn't sure about what I was getting into! I'm a new grad NP and I thought I was just in for a good old-fashioned bashing! I couldn't have been more wrong and more pleasantly surprised! I 100% agree, we have to know what we don't know, stay within our scope and support one another! Thanks, ZDoggMD!

Love how he made the point of needing to collaborate and be a team. At my doctors office (they do everything, general, gyno, pediatrics, ob, etc.) Now my physician’s wife is a nurse practitioner there as well. If I am seeing him and he’s not totally confident he knows what medication I need he will outright say “my wife is better in this area than I am so let’s schedule you to see her regarding this issue” and if I’m seeing her it’s the same that works there This dynamic they have is incredible and because of it, every time I go there I am confident that no matter what they will make sure I have the best care.

Just a inoffensive comment passing by before hell breaks loose in the section comment. I'm an architect and I see this conflict between Architects and Engineers all the time, assholes gonna be assholes in every profession man.

I completely agree! Sorry, this is gonna be a novel! I'm currently a LPN, getting ready to graduate my ADN program this December. Additionally, I'm planning on obtaining my BSN and FNP. I'm well aware of the NP role in medicine and firmly believe that it is not that of a MD. Each member of the medical team is extremely valuable, from nursing aids all the way to MD. Each branch has their own specialty and training that make the patient experience, care, and healing very high quality when done correctly and cohesively. The main reason I want to practice as a FNP is due to the fact that I see so many patients and families complaining of feeling uninformed and uneducated due to the doctor's lack of time with them and/or horrible bed-side manner. As a nurse, I feel education is my priority and obligation. It makes me feel so much more accomplished knowing that I did my absolute best at educating a patient and family and giving them a foundation of knowledge about whatever disorder they may be dealing with. Don't get me wrong, I'm well aware there are many reasons for time constraints and that not every family or patient cares or wants to know very much. But being able to bridge that gap, whenever possible, is very important to me. In my experience, NP's typically get more time allotted to them when seeing patients, which then gives the NP more time to explain conditions and educate accordingly as well as plan a course of treatment that should be overseen by a MD. Doctors are more focused (appropriately) on treating the condition with hopes of full recovery. Just the other day, I was doing a CC clinical for school, and the person who was admitted in ICU was being scheduled for an EGD due to extensive GI bleeding and also had several other co-morbidities. The patient had had several bags of blood throughout the night and his H&H were 9.8&34 :( . The docs and nurses were doing whatever they could to make him comfortable and stable.A little later, the wife was at the bedside when the doc came in to explain the scoping and obtain consent. He quickly rambled the information, while standing over her with his hand on his hips. He asked her if she had any questions at the same time he pulled his phone out and began looking at messages. The wife, with tears in her eyes stuttered and stammered, stated she didn't know what to ask and "I guess you must have covered everything." The doctor told her it was all routine and "things should be fine." The staff nurse I was with came over with the consent form and the wife signed it as the doctor walked out of the room. My heart started aching. This poor wife. Her husband was laying in bed right next to her sleeping due to exhaustion from his condition, and all she can really think about and see is the NG tube that is on intermittent suction draining the blood from his stomach. Luckily, since I'm a student in that situation, I had a little more freedom with my time since her husband was my only assigned patient that day. I told her I would be right back, ran to my book bag and grabbed my textbook. I came back in, opened the book up to the GI section and started a mini tutorial on what his condition was and what the EGD was for. The staff nurse kept close just in case she was needed and let us be. The wife became engaged and started asking questions. The 2 questions that I didn't have an answer for, I took to my instructor and the Intensivist who then came in to talk to the wife. After everything was settled, the wife asked me if she could give me a hug. She stated that no one had ever taken the time to sit down and explain things as well as I did and asked why I didn't choose to become a doctor, "since you're so caring and knowledgeable." I told her that my calling is to be a nurse and that I like being able to have a more one-on-one (staffing ratio permitting) interaction with patients.

I am a psychiatric pharmacist and I will take a nurse practitioner over a physician's assistant any day of the week

When I completed my PhD I was told by my hospital that I could not refer to me as Dr T. Now 20 years forward nurses who complete the DNP program are allowed such designation. These nurses are terrific but they don't have the research doctoral degree that I earned a hundred years ago. They call themselves Dr. These nurses don't have an advanced degree that compares with the degree I actually have it and they don't. If you wear a lab coat with Dr T on it, it should say, Dr T, PhD, RN, perhaps RN-BC. Without this clarification nurses ill represent themselves to our patients.

There are competent doctors and incompetent doctors and there are competent nurse practitioners and incompetent nurse practitioners. There seems to be an ongoing thing with training and licenses. I've experienced similar things between RNs and LPNs with LPNs feeling that their training is equal and that therefore, they should be licensed to do the same things an RN is licensed to do and that they should not be supervised by an RN. Not understanding differences in training and scopes of practices and respecting that there are differences, that level of blind arrogance doesn't help the patients.

Using the term "supervisor" and the legal restrictions that accompany that language is the problem. One could even argue that scope and training are problematic. Here are the facts. 1. Many NP programs are sub-par and graduates need to work harder to perform at the same level of even the worst residency prepared physician. The type of nursing experience gained before NP school greatly influences competency. 2. An NP with 10 years of RN work in an intensive specialty like ER or ICU and then 5 years of inpatient work as an NP.... Does not need to be "supervised" by a physician 3 weeks out of a family medicine residency. Yet this Is the law. It creates only an illusion of supervisory safety and control. 3. No matter your credentials... The most dangerous medical provider is the one who does not recognize their limitations and know when to ask for help. I have seen both MD and NP exercise such ignorance. The former however has legal protection and state condoned authority to do so. Anyone think it's a good idea for a family medicine trained physician of 20 years to attempt placing an emergency pacemaker at a rural emergency department. Despite having only practiced the procedure once in residency training 2 decades ago? Of course it's a bad idea but I have seen this and many other rediculous scenarios play out. Yet despite my training and experience as a flight nurse, with hundreds of intubations logged. In my new role as NP I would place my license in peril assisting a difficult emergency intubation while rounding hospital. My point is that instead of arguing false metrics like hours of training and legal scope. Which are poor if not irrelevant predictors of patient safety, quality and outcome (as more and more studies clearly demonstrate). It would benefit ALL parties to reconsider how we measure our value and role in medicine. Not in the context of a hierarchy but as team with each member having a unique and valuable skill set. The value of direct actual experience and proven competency is not even being considered in these arguments... Yet it's probably the only thing that actually matters.

Doctor refers to the level of education someone has not their role in the healthcare system. If someone studies chemistry, biology, etc. to the level of a PhD they are indeed a doctor. So if a person has a DNP they are a doctor of nursing practice. MD is a medical doctor or a doctor of medicine.

Thank you for making this video. My sister is finishing up nursing school. Starting this coming fall she plans to become a nurse practitioner. Unfortunately, she's doubting her decision because of the way many doctors seem to perceive nurse practitioners. Thank you for trying to make life easier for people like my sister.

As a nurse, most of the time I prefer a NP. They listen better and do a more thorough exam. If I tell the doctor I feel they blow off a complaint but if the NP brings it to them they listen. I don't feel that most physicians disrespect NPs. I feel most look at them as a very important part of the healthcare team. Also, when I ask the NP to talk to the doctor about something they are better able to get what I need for a patient vs when I as an R.N ask the doctor for the same thing.

I have so much to say about this. I am an icu Nurse, and when I first graduated nursing school I thought about going back to be an NP. I visited several schools and researched the curriculum. I saw some of my co workers working as new NP’s and felt that they were expected to make medical decisions that were out of their scope of practice. One of them works with one of our cardiologists and comes to the icu and makes decisions that I don’t think she’s educated on. I hope no one takes offense to this, because I think NP’s are a great addition to the team! But long story longer, I realized that being an NP is not something in my journey for so many reasons. But I wouldn’t feel comfortable treating patients in an outpatient or inpatient setting the way that MDs do, who went to school for a really long freakin time! But that’s MY decision. I also started the pre med path before going to nursing school. Then I had my daughter and realized that nursing was a better situation for my family life, on a personal level. I don’t believe that nurses become nurses because we can’t get into med school. That’s such a false statement. My husbands dad is a doctor, and he specifically became a nurse because he wanted to work in healthcare but wanted a better work life balance compared to what he had growing up with his dad. So much respect for everyone in our field! Everyone is needed! Everyone has a different journey! Thank you for your honesty and this bad ass channel!

Lol. You are hilarious. I am an acute care nurse practioner and guess what I'm not a doctor. I work in an ICU in collaboration with the intensivist and other physicians and I agree there can be no comparison in the training!! Thank goodness for up-to-date . Agree with this vlog wholeheartedly.

I am a paramedic who works in an ED as a Nurse (minus a few responsibilities, I mean how often are you actually giving tPa?) who got accepted to MD and decided to DNP... this chat really hit home and encourages me to go forth into this mess we call healthcare and kick some ass. nice work fellas!