Standing Firm: POMA's Commitment to Physician-Led Care

October 2025 | Vol. 69, No. 3
Written by George Wolters, DO, POMA President, and Tyler Burke, POMA Senior Director of Government Affairs

Opposition to granting independent licensure for advanced practice nurses is grounded in the realities and demands of family practice. Providing comprehensive medical care for all ages and all genders requires extensive training and experience, best delivered by a team directed by a physician. Multiple physician organizations have opposed expanded licensing efforts for decades.

Advocates for independent nurse practice claim there is no difference in outcomes between independent practice and physician-led, team-based care. Other studies contradict this claim by showing poorer outcomes, lower patient satisfaction, and higher costs associated with unsupervised nurse practice. Additionally, concerns over increased diagnostic X-ray use and overprescription of antibiotics and opioids reinforce questions of patient safety. An excellent commentary and overview, published in the Journal of Osteopathic Medicine (2024; 124(12): 555-558), is well worth the read.

In 2019, POMA and other key stakeholders began negotiations regarding the scope of practice for Certified Registered Nurse Practitioners (CRNPs) in Pennsylvania. After months of challenging and complex discussions, the parties reached an agreement on a pilot program. This program would be limited to primary care and Healthcare Practitioner Shortage Areas (HPSAs), a provision POMA believed would ensure CRNPs practiced in areas with true healthcare access needs, addressing the very gaps their advocacy claimed to target.

Advancing Health Equity Through Holistic Care: The Work of St. Joseph's Institute of Clinical Bioethics

October 2025 | Vol. 69, No. 3
Written by Shrijal S. Desai¹, PCOM OMS-III, Christopher Antoniello¹, PCOM OMS-III, and Jeremy Muhr¹, PCOM OMS-III

Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM)¹
Saint Joseph's University Institute of Clinical Bioethics¹

The Pennsylvania Osteopathic Medical Association (POMA) is pivotal in advancing the interests, safety, and welfare of osteopathic physicians and the patients they serve. This becomes more important as obstacles arise when serving underserved communities. Saint Joseph's University’s Institute of Clinical Bioethics (ICB) is an example of an initiative to address healthcare and social challenges through community-based healthcare programs. The ICB's Health Promoter Programs provide wide-ranging, culturally relevant healthcare services to various patient populations throughout the greater Philadelphia region.

The ICB’s Health Promoter Program is a comprehensive program that aims to bridge the gap in access to healthcare for vulnerable groups of people in Philadelphia. By offering an assortment of free health services ranging from blood pressure, cholesterol, and diabetes screenings to wound care services for assessment and treatment of drug-induced wounds, the program aims to address critical health disparities that affect marginalized communities disproportionately. The ICB’s provision of free healthcare services exactly responds to POMA's mission of providing equal access to healthcare, whereby anyone, regardless of socioeconomic status, is provided access to medical care. This model of care focuses on the individual's well-being and impacts community health directly by promoting preventive care early in life.