(Steve Thurston, 2023)
Adirondack Mobile Nurse: Owner Lisa Murphy just after she cut the ribbon at her office in Queensbury. Her husband Greg Murphy cheered her on.
Adirondack Mobile Nurse has been open in Queensbury since November but officially cut the ribbon in early February. Lisa Murphy, the nurse in the name, has set up shop in the basement of the Cedars Senior Living Community on Evergreen Lane. The ribbon cutting hosted by the Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce was held Feb. 9.
Murphy, a nurse for 23 years, said she offers what is called “nurse concierge” services, a relatively new medical practice that allows nurses to conduct some services from their own office but also at a person’s home, office, hotel room or elsewhere. Murphy said she expects to use her office space only a couple days per week.
She said concierge nurses can fill the gaps.
“I’m kind of that in-between person,” she said.
She can offer some services beyond what insurance may cover, and she also acts as a companion and expert who works with the patient's primary care physician and other medical professionals. She may fill a gap for the person recuperating at home and trying to keep from returning to the hospital. Concierge nurses also work with patients and families on end-of-life decisions.
[See our story about a Glens Falls doctor offering concierge services.]
She can talk to insurance companies and go on doctor’s visits with people. If she has seen a patient recently, she can call ahead to a doctor’s office or the emergency department and brief the staff if a patient is on the way in.
Concierge nurses offer services such as IV infusions, medical escorts, wound care, or post-operative care.
“I’ve cut a lot of toenails” on older patients, Murphy said at her office ribbon cutting. To the chuckles in the room she replied that overly long toenails can lead to pain or infection. Soon, a person might not be walking or walking with difficulty.
It’s a simple fix, but “it can affect mobility,” she said.
But the job is not all wounds and emergencies, she said.
She can also administer vitamins intravenously, and she has a blend just right for a hangover. It's popular, she said, adding that she has some regulars who come in for the pick-me-up, and she had a group of six people scheduled a pre-Super Bowl session.
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