What is a Nurse Practitioner?

                                         Mary Ellen Fleming Price, APN, PMHCNS-BC                 Doris Van Byssum, Psy.D., PMHNP-BC

 

“So when do I see the doctor”?

Nurse Practitioners (NPs) hear this sometimes, as our role is not always clear to the public.  So what is an NP?  An NP is a registered nurse (RN) who has gone on to a Master’s or Doctoral program.  A Psychiatric Mental Health NP (PMHNP) specializes in Psychiatry.  The laws for practice differ from state to state.  In Illinois, where our practice Genesis Clinical Services is based, NPs can write prescriptions like a psychiatrist, but we have a collaborating physician.  The collaborating physician is available for questions and provides supervision throughout your care.  The Psych NPs have courses in Advance Physical Assessment, Advanced Pharmacology, Psychopharmacology, Advanced Pathophysiology, as well as a series of courses in preparation to prescribe and conduct therapy.  There are also 500+ hours of supervised direct patient care required to sit for the board certification examination (PMHNP-BC).

At Genesis Clinical Services, we two NPs each have more than 20 years of clinical experience.  We both began our careers as Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS), as Psychiatry didn’t have Nurse Practitioners at that time.  We both went on to complete a Post Master’s Certificate to be able to prescribe.  More classes and more clinical time were required.  We both spent many years in private practice.  Our experiences include teaching at the baccalaureate and master’s levels, consulting, managing and working in hospitals.  Feel free to call our intake line at 630-653-6441 x207 and schedule an intake consultation today!

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Mary Ellen Fleming Price, APN, PMHCNS-BC comes to Genesis with over twenty-five years of experience working in Mental Health Nursing.  She brings years of clinical experience in a variety of roles and settings to Genesis.  She is a nurse practitioner with a unique focus on Medication Management, Psychotherapy and Collaborative care.  She is also an Instructor in the Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Program at the University of St. Francis in Joliet as well as Adjunct Faculty at Waubonsee Community College.  She will work in collaboration with all providers at Genesis.
Doris Van Byssum, Psy.D., PMHNP-BC, is a board certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner and a Licensed Clinical Psychologist. Her unique combination of medication management and various modes of psychotherapy approaches allow for the provision of effective, comprehensive care.  With over thirty years of experience in working with mental health issues, she brings years of diverse training and experience to her practice.  In addition, she is an Associate Professor and Director of the Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Program at the University of St. Francis in Joliet.  She works collaboratively with the psychiatrists and therapists at Genesis Clinical Services.