Nurse practitioners and physician assistants are advanced healthcare practitioners with similar responsibilities, such as diagnosing illnesses and prescribing medications. However, their training and paths toward certification differ in significant ways. This blog post unpacks the key differences between NPs and PAs to help you determine which career path best aligns with your goals. What Is a Nurse Practitioner? A nurse practitioner (NP) is a licensed clinician who provides comprehensive healthcare to patients of all ages. An NP can work in virtually any healthcare setting, diagnosing patient conditions and prescribing medications. As of October 2022, nurse practitioners have full practice authority in 27 states, meaning that they can practice Read more
Heather Rennerfeldt completed her bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science from the University of Sioux Falls in Sioux Falls, SD in 2005. Following a year as an adjunct instructor in the Exercise Science department at the University of Sioux Falls, she earned her Master of Science in Occupational Therapy from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, SD in 2009. Rennerfeldt has worked as an occupational therapist in acute care, ICU and inpatient rehab at Spring Valley Hospital in Las Vegas, NV, and inpatient and outpatient rehab at Healthsouth Rehabilitation in Henderson, NV.
In 2013, she relocated to Austin, TX, where she worked as an inpatient occupational therapist at St. David’s North Austin Hospital before transferring to St. David’s Rehabilitation Hospital to join the Spinal Cord Injury inpatient rehab team. In 2017, she started working in the outpatient neurological rehabilitation setting at Seton Brain and Spine Recovery Center and then with Spero Rehab in 2018. While at Spero Rehab, she established an adapted sports program for clients, served as liaison to the Lonestar Paralysis Foundation Scholarship committee and helped establish an annual fundraising event known as the “Walk ‘N Roll Mile.”
Rennerfeldt has worked with all adult demographics, though her passion is for the neurological, adapted sports and community reintegration populations.
Instructor Rennerfeldt served 13 years in the United States Army Reserves as a chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) specialist and is an Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran. She is also involved in several organizations including Lone Star Paralysis Foundation, Camp Xtreme, the USA Wheelchair Rugby Paralympic team, the Texas Stampede wheelchair rugby team and the Austin Valkyries Women’s Rugby team. She joined the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences in April 2022.
