Building Expertise, Enhancing Care: Our New Fellowship Program

When you make an appointment for healthcare services at Lee Health, you’ll be offered the choice to see your doctor or an advanced practice provider—either a physician assistant (PA) or an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN).

These medical experts are highly educated, experienced, and work with Lee Physician Group doctors to provide you with the highest quality patient care. They help lighten the load for doctors but also play an important role in people-centered care and treatment.

PAs and APRNs work with your entire healthcare team to optimize your care. In addition, they can often provide the medical care you need more quickly and at a lower cost.

Committed to training and retaining an advanced practice provider (APP) workforce that continues to meet the primary care needs of our patients and community, Lee Health has launched its Advanced Practice Provider (APP) fellowship programs. These 12-month positions are designed to provide post-graduate training to APPs who wish to gain more experience in primary care, surgery, or adult critical care.

Curious about what a PA or APRN does?

“Our goal is to provide support and training, allowing APP Fellows to build confidence and knowledge in the clinical specialties of the specific fellowship,” says physician assistant Nelson Guzman, one of the program’s supervisors. “The programs provide our fellows with a variety of clinical and hands-on experiences focused on clinical decision-making, patient safety, technical skills and professionalism that will ensure their ability to excel within their specialties.”

Applications will be accepted through Dec. 31, 2021, for all three areas. The fellowships are anticipated to start in March 2022.

The Lee Health APP Fellowship Programs not only aims to foster graduates who are well-rounded APPs ready to work within the Lee Health healthcare team but also meet a shortage of physicians predicted for both Florida and the country.

Advanced practice providers are not doctors, but they have advanced degrees and are qualified to take on some of the roles traditionally assumed by doctors. APP are a growing field of medical professionals filling the need for high-quality patient care services. 

“Our program will provide an educational and nurturing environment to educate and enable our fellows to provide care for patients at any point of their healthcare journey,” Guzman says. “To deliver complex, comprehensive care, providers must rely on a broad set of skills and the precise integration of behavioral and social sciences, basic procedural skills and the ability to coordinate care with specialists. The Lee Health APP Fellowship Program aims to put a fine point on those skills.”

To learn more about Lee Health’s APP fellowship programs, go here.