Cathy Hampton’s job as a nurse practitioner is similar in a lot of ways to that of a doctor. She can prescribe medication, order tests, refer patients to specialists, and manage treatments.

Hampton is employed half of her workweek just 1.5 miles north of the Capitol, at So Others Might Eat, or SOME, an organization for low-income people that provides food, housing, job training, counseling, and a medical clinic. Hampton, who has been a nurse practitioner for 10 of her 25 years as a nurse, can walk her patients down the hall to meet with social workers or help them with other services they need.