I volunteer at a hospital where nurses are given a large chunk of the responsibility for face-to-face patient care. They're actually called "nurse practitioners" and are the first people to assess patients coming into the ER. Doctors make rounds with the patients once they're settled in, and are the ones explaining the diagnosis/treatment.
I think this is fine as long as the nurses are trained and informed towards those increased responsibilities, so that both nurses and doctors still have specialized but complementary roles in a patient's care.
Also, rather than simply transferring the workload from doctors onto nurses, make sure that a balance is achieved, without also compromising the overall responsibility/authority of the physician(s) on duty.
I think this is fine as long as the nurses are trained and informed towards those increased responsibilities, so that both nurses and doctors still have specialized but complementary roles in a patient's care.
Also, rather than simply transferring the workload from doctors onto nurses, make sure that a balance is achieved, without also compromising the overall responsibility/authority of the physician(s) on duty.
