The Clinical Advantage of Nurse Practitioner-Led Ketamine Care

Many patients arrive at a ketamine clinic expecting to be treated by a physician and are surprised to find that their care is led by nurse practitioners. At Thrive Center for Health in Grand Rapids, our ketamine therapy and psychiatric medication management are delivered by board-certified Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners — a clinical model that reflects both the current structure of specialized psychiatric care and a deliberate investment in providers whose training is concentrated specifically in mental health and ketamine-assisted treatment. Understanding who is delivering your care, and why that matters, is a reasonable thing to want before you begin.

What a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Is

A Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) is an advanced practice registered nurse who has completed graduate-level education specifically in psychiatric and mental health care, holds national board certification in that specialty, and is licensed to diagnose mental health conditions, prescribe medications, and provide a full scope of psychiatric treatment independently. This is not a generalist nursing role adapted for psychiatric settings — it is a specialty credential built from the ground up around mental health care.

At our clinic, our PMHNPs have pursued additional training specifically in ketamine therapy through the American Society of Ketamine Physicians, Psychotherapists, and Practitioners (ASKP3), a national credentialing organization dedicated to establishing and maintaining standards for ketamine-assisted care. ASKP3 training is not a standard component of PMHNP education — it requires deliberate pursuit, and the providers on our clinical team have completed it. That combination — psychiatric specialty training plus ketamine-specific credentialing — is what defines a provider who is genuinely equipped to deliver this treatment, as distinct from one who simply works in a clinic that offers it.

Our Clinical Team

Our ketamine care is led by two board-certified PMHNPs. Erika holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) from Michigan State University, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Western Michigan University, and ANCC board certification. She brings over 11 years of clinical experience and a holistic, person-centered approach that integrates lifestyle factors — sleep, nutrition, physical activity — alongside medication management and psychotherapy in building each patient’s care plan. She is ASKP3-trained.

Kari holds a BSN from Baker College and brings clinical experience spanning cardiac nursing in Hawaii and travel nursing across the country before specializing in mental health. She is ASKP3-trained and approaches ketamine care with a focus on helping patients through their mental health challenges with precision and compassion.

Medical clearances and infusion administration are handled by Kelsey, a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner who earned her degree from Spring Arbor University. Kelsey’s clinical role ensures that each patient’s physical health factors are thoroughly assessed before treatment begins and that infusions are administered with attention to both safety and patient comfort.

Overseeing our clinical team as Medical Director is Dr. Drumm, a General Psychiatrist who conducted clinical research on ketamine’s utility in psychiatric disorders during his residency at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Dr. Drumm’s special interests include treatment-resistant depression, PTSD, bipolar disorder, ADHD, and psychopharmacology, and his research background directly informs the clinical standards our team applies. His oversight means that the protocols our PMHNPs follow are grounded in both current evidence and direct research experience with the medication. You can learn more about every member of our clinical team on our provider team page.

Nursing care across all infusion sessions is directed by Jay Patrick Clancy, RN, BSN, MS, CEN, EMT-B, whose more than ten years of clinical and emergency nursing experience is applied to maintaining the highest standards of care in our outpatient infusion setting.

Why Specialized NP-Led Care Works

The clinical advantage of our model is not that nurse practitioners are superior to physicians in the abstract — it is that our specific NPs have built their entire clinical practice around psychiatric care and ketamine therapy, supported by a Medical Director with ketamine research experience. Structured, provider-led psychiatric treatment management has been shown to improve both safety and outcomes for patients (Bauer et al., 2022), and ketamine has demonstrated rapid antidepressant effects in patients who have not responded to prior treatments (Murrough et al., 2013). That structure is most effective when the providers delivering it are working at the full depth of their specialty training rather than applying generalist skills to a specialized treatment context.

In practice, what this means for patients is consistent, expert attention across the full course of treatment. Our PMHNPs conduct the psychiatric clearance, build the individualized treatment plan, monitor your response across sessions, adjust your dose when needed, and manage your psychiatric medications if you are enrolled in our medication management service. They are not rotating in and out of your care — they are the clinical through-line from your first evaluation to your last maintenance infusion. To understand more about what the process looks like from the patient’s perspective, read our overview of the ketamine infusion therapy patient experience.

For patients in our psychiatric medication management program, the same providers who oversee ketamine therapy also manage prescriptions, conduct follow-up evaluations, and coordinate with other providers in your care network when appropriate. This integration eliminates the clinical gaps that occur when ketamine treatment and medication management are handled by separate providers who do not communicate directly with each other.

What This Means for Treatment-Resistant Patients

Patients with treatment-resistant depression, PTSD, OCD, bipolar disorder, anxiety, or chronic pain conditions often arrive with complex clinical histories — multiple prior medication trials, previous treatment relationships that were not effective, and accumulated skepticism about whether any provider will take their situation seriously. Our team’s specialization means they are not encountering this patient population for the first time. The presentations, the histories, and the clinical challenges that define treatment-resistant cases are what our providers work with every day.

Erika’s approach — integrating sleep, nutrition, movement, and psychotherapy alongside medication — reflects the clinical reality that treatment-resistant conditions rarely have single-factor solutions. Kari’s background across diverse clinical settings, including high-acuity cardiac nursing, reflects a capacity to hold complex clinical pictures and adjust in real time. These are not incidental qualities — they are the product of the kind of training and experience that defines providers who are well-matched to the patients we serve.

Addressing Two Common Barriers

Concern about provider qualifications. Some patients and families arrive uncertain about whether a nurse practitioner is adequately qualified to manage a medication as potent as ketamine. This is a reasonable question, and we address it directly. Our PMHNPs hold graduate-level specialty credentials, national board certifications, and ketamine-specific training through ASKP3. They practice under the oversight of a physician Medical Director with direct ketamine research experience. The clinical protocols they follow reflect both the current evidence base and the standards established by a national professional organization dedicated specifically to this treatment. Discuss any specific credential questions with your provider during the consultation — they will answer them plainly.

Cost uncertainty. Without accepted insurance, the psychiatric clearance is $250, the medical clearance is $150, each mental health infusion is $500, and follow-up appointments are $150. For patients with accepted insurance — Cigna, BCBS, Priority Health, Aetna, McLaren, Molina, TriCare, Michigan Medicaid, and Michigan Medicare among others — office visit components are billed to insurance with a $40 deposit required at scheduling, and the per-infusion cash portion drops to $300 for mental health patients. Veterans receive a 10% discount on all visits. Review our full pricing information or contact us before scheduling to verify your specific coverage.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are your nurse practitioners able to prescribe ketamine independently? Yes. Board-certified PMHNPs are licensed to prescribe medications, including controlled substances such as ketamine, within the scope of their specialty practice. Our PMHNPs prescribe and administer ketamine under clinical protocols developed in coordination with our Medical Director, Dr. Drumm, a General Psychiatrist with ketamine research experience.

Will I ever see a physician during my treatment? Dr. Drumm serves as our Medical Director and oversees the clinical protocols our team follows. For most patients, day-to-day care is delivered by our PMHNPs and nursing staff. If a clinical situation requires physician-level consultation, that pathway exists within our structure. Discuss any specific preferences or concerns with your provider during the consultation.

How does nurse practitioner-led care compare to psychiatrist-led ketamine treatment? The clinical outcomes associated with ketamine therapy are tied to the quality of the screening process, the accuracy of dosing, the monitoring during infusions, and the follow-up care — not to the specific credential of the provider delivering it, provided that provider has appropriate specialty training. Our PMHNPs have psychiatric specialty credentials, ASKP3 ketamine-specific training, and physician oversight. Results vary by individual, and the qualifications of your specific care team are a reasonable factor to evaluate when choosing a provider.

Can your nurse practitioners manage my existing psychiatric medications? Yes. Our psychiatric medication management service is delivered by our PMHNPs, who can evaluate, prescribe, and adjust psychiatric medications as part of an ongoing care relationship. This service is available as a standalone offering or integrated with ketamine therapy for patients receiving both. Research consistently shows that ketamine is effective in treatment-resistant depression, making this integrated approach especially valuable for patients who have not responded to prior treatments.

Key Takeaways

• Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners (PMHNPs) are advanced practice clinicians with graduate-level specialty training in psychiatric care, national board certification, and independent prescribing authority — they are not generalist nurses adapted to a psychiatric setting.
• Our PMHNPs — Erika (DNP, ANCC board-certified, ASKP3-trained, 11+ years experience) and Kari (BSN, ASKP3-trained) — have pursued ketamine-specific credentialing through ASKP3 in addition to their psychiatric specialty training.
• Clinical oversight is provided by Medical Director Dr. Drumm, a General Psychiatrist who conducted ketamine research during his residency and whose special interests include treatment-resistant depression, PTSD, and psychopharmacology.
• Structured, provider-led psychiatric treatment management has been shown to improve both patient safety and clinical outcomes — a benefit that is most fully realized when providers are working at the depth of their specialty training.
• Results vary by individual — the clinical advantage of a specialized, credentialed team is in the quality of the evaluation, monitoring, and ongoing management, not in a guaranteed outcome.

The providers delivering your care are the most consequential factor in how that care goes. At Thrive Center for Health in Grand Rapids, our clinical team has built their practice around psychiatric care and ketamine therapy specifically — not adapted it from somewhere else. If you want to meet our team and discuss whether our approach is right for your situation, call us at 616-730-8069 or schedule a consultation online. Results vary by individual, and we will give you a direct answer about what our team is qualified to offer.

References

Bauer, M., Andreassen, O. A., Geddes, J. R., Vedel Kessing, L., Lewitzka, U., Schulze, T. G., & Vieta, E. (2022). Improving the safety and efficacy of psychiatric medication management. BMC Medicine. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9498383/

Murrough, J. W., Iosifescu, D. V., Chang, L. C., Al Jurdi, R. K., Green, C. E., Perez, A. M., Iqbal, S., Pillemer, S., Foulkes, A., Shah, A., Mathew, S. J., & Charney, D. S. (2013). Antidepressant efficacy of ketamine in treatment-resistant major depression: A two-site randomized controlled trial. American Journal of Psychiatry, 170(10), 1134–1142. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23982301/

Medical Disclaimer

The information in this blog is provided for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Ketamine therapy and psychiatric medication management should only be pursued under the supervision of licensed medical providers familiar with your full psychiatric and medical history. Individual results vary — not every patient will be an appropriate candidate for ketamine therapy, and no specific outcome can be guaranteed. Discuss all treatment options with a qualified healthcare provider before making decisions about your care. If you are experiencing a mental health crisis or thoughts of self-harm, please call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or go to your nearest emergency room.