Physician Extension

Physician extension occurs when a licensed physician authorizes a non-physician to act as a “physician extender” to provide medical care to patients directly under the physician's medical license. In traditional practices the physician extender is a nurse practitioner (NP) or physician assistant (PA) operating under a collaborative practice agreement with the physician. 

In emergency medical services (EMS), certified and registered EMS providers, as defined by the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT), deliver medical care as a physician extender while operating under the direction of a physician, standing orders/protocols, or operational medical direction (OMD). 

In emerging private practices, hospitals, or concierge-like mobile medical care services, the physician extender can include registered nurses and EMS providers with expanded training and authorization to provide a variety of medical services within their scope of practice and as a medical assistant to a physician or advanced practitioner under the same medical direction as EMS agencies and practices. 

EMERGILITY® provides discreet, protective, urgent, and emergency medical services utilizing physicians, physician extenders (advanced practitioners, nurses, and EMS providers), mixed medical-security professionals, and non-medical security personnel. The level and type of security or medical provider present at the time of service is based on client need and resource availability.