A study conducted by the CNA and Nurses Service Organization found that nurse practitioners are more likely to receive malpractice claims in physician offices as opposed to nurse practitioner owned offices.
The study analyzed 232 CNA professional liability claims between January 2017 and January 2021. It found that 31.5 percent of claims involved physician offices, compared to 13.8 percent involving offices run by nurse practitioners.
Between 2017 and 2022, claims against nurse practitioners increased at all practice locations. For example, claims involving nurse practitioner offices increased by nearly 6 percentage points. However, this increase is mainly due to an increase in nurse practitioner-owned facilities, according to the study.
"This increase in claims may be attributed to the overall increase of NPs in the workforce coupled with the increase of NPs working in underserved specialties, such as aging services facilities, as well as the steady decline of primary care physicians," the study said.
The study also states that 43 percent of licensing board actions involving nurse practitioners result in disciplinary action.