2024’s Co-APP of the Year now leads council

Heather Austin, PA-C, Thoracic & Cardiac Surgery, has been elected by members to chair the Advanced Practice Professional Committee at Saint Joseph Hospital.

“I love surgery, I love what I do and I love seeing patients get better,” said Austin. “I’m excited to chair the council so I can help all APPs at Saint Joseph feel the same job satisfaction I do, satisfaction they’ve earned and deserve.”

But we’re jumping ahead. First, let’s talk about the work of the council.

Austin says the tasks the council tackles are MEC-driven. As chair of the council, she sits on the MEC, providing the APP perspective to MEC business and bringing back to the council news of any initiative that requires their attention.

For example, if the MEC approves an upcoming documentation initiative, Austin and the council make sure their APP colleagues are aware of what’s coming and have the training needed to be successful when the initiative launches.

The council provides tangible, measurable, boots-on-the-ground influence over policies and practices that affect workflow, patient flow, quality and safety, work environment and the success of new initiatives hospital-wide.

That’s the work and it’s vital. The council’s purpose, however, is another story.

“You know every day I come to work, I turn on my computer screen and I’m reminded that I’m seen as ‘lesser-than,’” said Austin. “Right on the screen, I’m referred to as a ‘mid-level.’ That’s not just a label; it’s a stigma that sticks. There’s nothing ‘middling’ about what we do. We function as full providers who can practice with autonomy.”

Austin sees the purpose of the council and her role as chair as a platform and vehicle to elevate the stature of APPs, ensure they receive recognition for their expertise and, in those ways, help her colleagues find fulfillment in their work and in the careers they’ve chosen.

During her two-year term as chair, Austin will lead an awareness campaign that reinforces for physicians and hospital leaders the benefits of APPs and their scope of expertise.

• APPs follow the same best-practice guidelines to diagnose and prescribe.

• They are essential to decreasing the cost of care.

• APPs typically have more time at the bedside and continue to see patients after discharge, strengthening continuity of care.

• Colorado law allows them the autonomy to provide care at the top of their practice.

Particularly at Saint Joseph, significant progress has been made in positioning APPs as partners in care with physicians. The hospital was the first in Peaks to establish an APP Council with a seat on the MEC, and it was the first to recognize the contributions of APPs at the Annual Medical Staff Meeting and Dinner with an APP of the Year Award, a title Austin currently co-holds with Kimberly Johnson, NP, APP Council member.

The vehicle driving these changes is gaining speed, and Austin plans to keep her foot on the gas.

“I definitely want to thank the physicians and hospital leaders who’ve supported this effort and who remain our biggest champions,” she said. “They’ve amplified our voice and helped legitimize this effort.”

“Still, there’s more progress to be made in staking our claim: We’re here. We’re staying. We’re legit, and we can make healthcare better.”

Austin invites advanced practice professionals to join the council in its work and purpose. She also encourages her colleagues to reach out to her with any issues about providing care that the council can address.