I see a psychiatric nurse practictioner & highly recommend this option. I have been seeing her for 10 yrs. In our state she can prescribe meds. She works "under" a psychiatrist she consults with if she feels the need to, but she is on top of the newest reseach & everything & has gone over & above the call of duty for me. Calling my ins. co. when they refused to pay for the Provigil (she started me on it 10 yrs. ago) & sent them all the literature showing it was useful for bipolar 1 & they reversed their decision & paid for it (very expensive med) & it has been a lifesaver medication for me.

She has accompanied me to an appt. w/ my internal med doc that was causing me all sorts of anxiety to the point that I kept cancelling the appt. (she took the afternoon off & did not charge me for this & just told me my physical health is just as important as my mental health).

She has given me her cell phone # to call if I need to just check in or to get motivation from her if I need it to do my exercise as she is a big believer that exercise is as important as medication.

My appts. with her are 1 hr. for $115.00, but if I need to stay longer she stays without rushing me out (she always allows a "buffer" between appts. for this purpose) & does not charge me extra. 15 min. med check--you have got to be kidding me!! She asks me about how I am spending my time, what I am thinking about, etc. She needs to know ME to be able to tell if I am not in my normal state & to have a collaborative relationship with me. I am sorry. I would not put up wit 15 min. I don't even think that is medically safe if they are working with psych meds.--Suzy