Arizona Physician Collaboration
Find a collaborating physician in Arizona
GuardianMD matches nurse practitioners and physician assistants with physicians licensed in Arizona, and supports the agreement and oversight their role requires.
Licensed in Arizona
Agreements built around state requirements
Get matched
Fast physician matching in Arizona
Arizona does not require registered nurse practitioners (RNPs) to have a collaborating or supervising physician. RNPs provide patient care within their scope and consult with or refer to other appropriate healthcare professionals when a patient’s needs call for it. Review Arizona’s RNP scope of practice.
Even without a requirement, some Arizona NPs choose to work with a physician. A physician relationship can provide clinical consultation, chart reviews, protocol development, and a trusted second perspective as you add services or grow your practice. Practices may also seek physician involvement when a payer, credentialing body, facility, or organizational policy calls for it. GuardianMD matches eligible Arizona NPs with Arizona-licensed physicians and supports the documentation and communication that keep the relationship organized.
Arizona physician assistants operate under a separate statute. PAs below the applicable Board-certified experience threshold use a supervision agreement. PAs who satisfy the statutory experience pathway are not required to use a supervision agreement but must collaborate, consult, or refer as appropriate under the policies of their practice setting. RNP and PA arrangements should be evaluated separately. Review Arizona’s PA collaboration requirements.
Getting started in Arizona
Everything your Arizona practice needs to get started
Arizona RNPs do not need a physician relationship to practice, but GuardianMD supports NPs and practices that choose to work with one. We help organize physician matching, relationship documents, communication, and ongoing administrative support in one place. The structure depends on your goals for the physician relationship, provider type, population focus and role or PA scope, services, prescribing activities, procedures, staffing model, and practice setting.
- Matching with an Arizona-licensed physician
- Physician consultation and medical-direction support, based on your goals
- Practice-specific protocol and consent-form workflows
- Chart reviews, when included in your physician relationship
- Physician communication and relationship documentation support
- Access to the GuardianMD platform
Support is available to licensed, eligible clinicians and practices that meet GuardianMD requirements. Services depend on the applicable plan and may be limited or adjusted to comply with state law.
Who we serve
Collaboration for every practice type in Arizona
GuardianMD supports eligible Arizona NPs and practices that choose to add physician involvement, whether for clinical consultation, chart reviews, protocol development, or a payer, facility, or organizational policy. GuardianMD may also support eligible physician assistants through a separate process based on whether the PA is subject to a supervision agreement or the experienced-PA collaboration framework. Support is organized around the provider’s license, population focus and role or scope, services, prescribing activities, procedures, experience, staffing, and practice setting.
Practices may include:
- IV hydration and wellness
- Med spas and aesthetics
- Medical weight management
- Hormone therapy
- Psychiatry and mental health
- Primary care
- Telehealth
- Functional medicine
For practices with specialized clinical needs, GuardianMD can also help identify physicians with relevant experience. The final relationship must remain consistent with the clinician’s education, certification, scope, services, prescribing authority, procedures, facility policies, and applicable Arizona requirements.
How it works
From the first call to ongoing support
Tell us about your practice
Share your license type, service lines, and where you plan to operate in Arizona
Get matched to a physician
We identify a physician licensed in Arizona whose specialty aligns with the care you deliver.
Review the agreement
Your agreement is built around state requirements and walked through with you before signing.
Stay supported
Coordinated chart reviews, protocol updates, and physician access continue through the platform.
State Resources
Helpful links to Arizona’s licensing boards
This reference outlines the essential state medical compliance regulations that guide daily clinical practice and patient care. It serves as a quick-reference tool to help maintain the highest standards of legal and professional compliance.
The resources below link to the state’s official licensing boards.
Arizona Medical Board: https://azmd.gov/
Arizona State Board of Nursing: https://azbn.gov/
Arizona State Board of Pharmacy: https://pharmacy.az.gov/
Because healthcare regulations are frequently updated, please use this reference as a general guide and always defer to the current mandates of your State Boards of Medicine, Nursing, and Pharmacy.
Common questions
Collaboration in Arizona
Do Arizona nurse practitioners need a collaborating physician?
No. Arizona does not require physician supervision or a collaborative agreement for registered nurse practitioners (RNPs), regardless of specialty. RNPs must stay within their authorized role, population focus, education, and competence, and consult or refer when appropriate for the patient. Some NPs still choose to work with a physician for consultation and ongoing support. Read the Arizona Board of Nursing’s APRN practice FAQs.
Why might an Arizona NP choose to work with a physician?
Some Arizona NPs choose a physician relationship for clinical consultation, chart reviews, protocol development, or support when adding new services. Newer NPs, or NPs moving into a more complex specialty, may want structured consultation and chart reviews as they build experience. A practice may also seek physician involvement because an employer, facility, payer, or organizational policy calls for it, even though state law does not. Physician involvement is optional for Arizona RNPs. The Board of Nursing also recognizes that an appropriately qualified RNP may serve as a medical director for aesthetic facilities within the RNP’s population focus and role. Review Arizona’s guidance on APRN medical-director roles.
Will my matched physician be licensed in Arizona?
Yes. GuardianMD matches eligible practices with physicians who hold appropriate Arizona licenses. Matching considers your services, provider credentials, practice setting, and the purpose of the physician relationship. The physician’s experience and responsibilities should fit the proposed work.
Do Arizona physician assistants follow the same rules as nurse practitioners?
No. PAs follow a separate legal framework. A PA without board certification of at least 8,000 hours of clinical practice must use a supervision agreement. After board certification of those hours, the agreement is no longer required, but collaboration, consultation, and referral duties continue as appropriate. Practice-setting policies determine the required level of collaboration. Review Arizona’s PA supervision and collaboration requirements.
Does Arizona require a physician agreement to be filed?
Arizona does not require a physician collaboration agreement for RNPs. If an NP chooses to work with a physician, the relationship is defined by the agreement between the parties. Separate documents may still apply to a particular service or organizational arrangement. A PA who must use a supervision agreement must complete and sign it before performing healthcare tasks. It is kept on file at the main practice location and made available to the board on request. Recognition of the experienced-PA pathway requires board certification of qualifying clinical hours. Review Arizona’s PA agreement and record requirements.
Can I change physicians if my practice needs change?
GuardianMD can help coordinate a transition to another Arizona-licensed physician, subject to eligibility, physician availability, and agreement terms. The licensed parties remain responsible for required documentation and continuity arrangements. For a PA who still requires supervision, the new relationship must satisfy the applicable supervision-agreement requirements before the PA performs healthcare tasks under it. Review Arizona’s PA supervision-agreement requirements.
What support does GuardianMD provide after matching?
Depending on your provider type, practice, and service plan, support may include relationship documents, practice-specific protocols, consent-form workflows, chart reviews, physician communication, and organized records through the GuardianMD platform. Services are subject to eligibility and applicable requirements. Clinical decisions and professional compliance remain the responsibility of the licensed providers.
Last updated: October 5, 2026