The 2026 survey results highlight the expanding role of advanced practice providers (APPs) across cardiovascular care. Their contributions to productivity, workflow, access and patient satisfaction enable teams to deliver timely, guideline-based, patient-centered care.
With responses from more than 100 organizations, the report findings indicate a growing interest in how organizations can best leverage APP skill sets and appropriately support and compensate APPs.
Programs Represented
%
Increase in Program Participation
%
of Programs Use APPs in Ambulatory Settings
%
of Programs Use APPs in Formal Administrative Roles
SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Productivity-based incentives are being used more often, reported by 64% of programs in 2025 compared with 37% in 2022.
- The percentage of programs reporting a 4:1 patient-to-provider ratio of APPs in the ICU increased substantially across the survey period, while higher ratios such as 6:1 and 8:1 declined.
- While clinical responsibilities for acute care APPs have expanded modestly, the most notable changes involve greater use of overnight coverage, slightly higher patient loads, and more standardized scheduling models with fewer reports of extreme work hours.
- Call compensation structure shifted noticeably. Fewer programs report call as part of base salary, while more programs now offer hourly or per-call incentives.
- One of the key shifts across survey years was the increased use of 30-minute new patient visits, which became the most common model.
