Consider this:
- Greater practice efficiency - An AMA survey found that nonphysician practitioners increased the income of their physician employers by 18% while still allowing them to work one week less per year on average. Of all the providers included in the survey, PAs rated highest in terms of patient productivity and patient acceptance.
- Cost-effectiveness - According the to Medical Group Management Association, employers pay an average of 28 cents for every dollar that a PA generates for the practice.
- Patient satisfaction - The Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research found that patient satisfaction with Physician Assistants was between 89 and 96%.
What is a PA?
Physician Assistants (PAs) are highly skilled health practitioners who work under physician supervision to provide patient care services. PAs take complete medical histories, perform physical examinations, order and interpret diagnostic studies, such as laboratory tests and x-rays, diagnose and treat patients. Physician Assistants improve the accessibility of health care of underserved individuals in both urban and rural settings.
History
In the mid-1960s, physicians and educators recognized there was a shortage of primary care physicians. To remedy this, Dr. Eugene Stead of the Duke University Medical Center put together the first class of physician assistants in 1965. He selected Navy corpsmen with considerable medical training during their military service. Dr. Stead based the curriculum of the PA program on his knowledge of the fast-track training of doctors during World War II.
On October 6, 1967, Duke University PA program graduated the first PA students who went on to start practicing as PAs. Today there are more than 81,000 practicing PAs.
History
In the mid-1960s, physicians and educators recognized there was a shortage of primary care physicians. To remedy this, Dr. Eugene Stead of the Duke University Medical Center put together the first class of physician assistants in 1965. He selected Navy corpsmen with considerable medical training during their military service. Dr. Stead based the curriculum of the PA program on his knowledge of the fast-track training of doctors during World War II.
On October 6, 1967, Duke University PA program graduated the first PA students who went on to start practicing as PAs. Today there are more than 81,000 practicing PAs.
What requirements must PAs meet in order to practice?
In order to practice, PAs must have attended an accredited PA program. The PAs then must pass the national certification examination administered by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants. PAs then need to obtain state authorization to practice through state licensure, registration or certification.
To maintain national certification, PAs must complete 100 hours of continuing medical education every two years and pass a recertification examination every six years.
Where can PAs practice?
All states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands have laws or regulations authorizing PA practice.
To maintain national certification, PAs must complete 100 hours of continuing medical education every two years and pass a recertification examination every six years.
Where can PAs practice?
All states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands have laws or regulations authorizing PA practice.
Benefits of Hiring a PA
The physician-PA team enhances medicine because PAs are educated as clinical partners to provide physician-directed medical care. PAs provide a broad range of diagnostic and therapeutic services, from primary care to surgical procedures. In their work with physicians, PAs routinely perform physical exams and take patient histories, order and interpret laboratory tests, manage and treat illnesses, repair lacerations and perform office procedures, assist in surgery, write prescriptions, and provide health education and patient counseling.
Is a PA right for your practice?
One of the most valuable attributes of the PA profession is flexibility within the dynamic model of the physician-PA team. PAs can provide versatile medical care in all settings and specialties because of their broad general medical education. Hiring a PA means gaining an extra set of skilled hands, eyes, and ears. PAs offer an array of benefits to practices and physicians, including higher revenues, improvements in patient satisfaction via accessible care, and more flexibility in the schedules of their employers.
Is a PA right for your practice?
One of the most valuable attributes of the PA profession is flexibility within the dynamic model of the physician-PA team. PAs can provide versatile medical care in all settings and specialties because of their broad general medical education. Hiring a PA means gaining an extra set of skilled hands, eyes, and ears. PAs offer an array of benefits to practices and physicians, including higher revenues, improvements in patient satisfaction via accessible care, and more flexibility in the schedules of their employers.
1. Hiring a PA: The Benefits for Physicians and Practices. (2004, February). Retrieved from https://portal.utpa.edu/portal/page/portal/utpa_main/daa_home/hshs_home/pasp_home/pasp_jobs/jobs_files/hiring.pdf
2. How to Hire a Physician Assistant (And Why You Should). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://iapa.affiniscape.com/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=4
3. Physician Assistant History. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.aapa.org/the_pa_profession/history.aspx
2. How to Hire a Physician Assistant (And Why You Should). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://iapa.affiniscape.com/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=4
3. Physician Assistant History. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.aapa.org/the_pa_profession/history.aspx
