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ENTITY explains Physician Assistant DayPhoto via Instagram / @stethoscopesandyoga

UPDATE: This article was amended on Aug. 17 at 5:30 p.m. to further elaborate on the PA profession’s extensive educational requirements and job responsibilities. 

When you visit a hospital to treat an illness or injury, the experience can be difficult and sometimes frightening. The person who often gets credit for calming your nerves and solving the issue is the doctor who helps you. However, many times the person who helped you is not a physician but a physician assistant.

And no, this doesn’t mean a physician assistant is the doctor’s helper. Although the name frequently causes confusion, PAs do not assist others who practice medicine. They aren’t to be confused with medical assistants, the ones who often take vital signs and record patient history. PAs work independently from and in collaboration with physicians as they are medical professionals with a mastery of the same scientific knowledge and skills physicians are expected to understand.

“I would say there’s more of a collaborative relationship between physicians and PAs, particularly between those working in the same office. They’re available to ask each other questions or bounce ideas off of each other,” Karen (Fields) Luebke, MSPAS (Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies), PA-C and co-owner of the PANPworld website, tells ENTITY.

To make their roles more clear, people in this profession no longer go by physician associate or physician assistant. Instead, they simply go by PA.

And to honor these hard workers, here’s more information about the profession, in preparation for the upcoming PA week.

What is the history behind National PA Week?

ENTITY explains how wonderful national PA Week is

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National Physician Assistant Day was created and originally celebrated on Oct. 6. The date was chosen to commemorate the first PAs who graduated from Duke University in 1967. And this year, we’re observing 50 years of the PA profession.

And because of National PA Day’s success in starting a discussion on the realities of the profession, garnering more PA applicants and recognizing individuals who are often undermined, the day got extended to National PA Week, celebrated from Oct. 6 to Oct. 12. 

You should know that becoming a PA is not quick or easy.

ENTITY shares why PA Week is great

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Choosing to become a PA instead of a physician is not the easy route by any means. PAs are required to undergo a rigorous schooling and examination process.

First, you must achieve a Bachelor’s degree with specific prerequisites, including biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, microbiology, anatomy and physiology, in addition to non-scientific coursework.

On top of that, students looking to pursue a PA career typically need a GPA of 3.5 or above. Grades from science courses are considered more heavily than non-science courses.

However, a Bachelor’s degree alone will not qualify you for a PA program; applicants also need experience in a medical profession.

Although the exact amount of experience required varies from program to program, the American Academy of PAs (AAPA) states most students are expected to have at least three years of prior healthcare experience with hands-on patient care. Quinnipiac University, for instance, requires a minimum of 2,500 hours. This can be fulfilled by working as an EMT, nursing assistant, medical assistant, laboratory assistant, paramedic or other related jobs.

And despite a high demand for PAs, acceptance into a PA program is highly competitive. On average, PA programs accept 25 percent of applicants.

What happens once you’re accepted to an accredited PA program?

ENTITY explains Physician Assistant Day

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Once you’re actually accepted, the PA program lasts for two to three years, often going year-round with minimal time off. In addition, at least 40 hours per week is spent in the classroom, not counting outside studying.

When the PA profession was founded 50 years ago after the graduation of the first PAs from Duke University, that initial program and others that followed were designed to prepare medics returning from war.

Mary Rittle, Director of Communications for the National Commission on Certification of Physicians (NCCPA), explains to ENTITY that these courses were intended to provide medics with rich experience in field medicine for a role in the civilian health care system. These programs conferred certificates or bachelor’s degrees.

But now, today’s PA programs provide graduate-level education and almost all confer master’s degrees. (It’s important to note, though, that all accredited PA programs must confer master’s degrees by 2020.)

Similar to medical school, students take classes in subjects like anatomy and physiology, neuroanatomy, embryology, histology, pathophysiology, pharmacology and medical ethics in the first year of a PA program.

In addition, PA students study clinical medicine, which encompasses cardiology, neurology, pediatrics, surgery, orthopedics, obstetrics and gynecology, emergency medicine, rheumatology, dermatology, nephrology, urology, psychiatry and nutrition.

As a PA student, you will also complete over 2,000 hours of clinical rotations in many specialties, including family medicine, internal medicine, general surgery, pediatrics, psychiatry and women’s health/OB-GYN. During this time, it is not uncommon for potential PAs to work upwards of 80 hours per week.

Then after graduating from the rigorous program, the final step to becoming a PA is getting nationally certified. 

The Physician Assistant National Certifying Exam (PANCE) is a five-hour long examination, containing 300 multiple choice questions about medicine and surgical procedures. Applicants have six chances to take the exam over a six-year period before they have to complete the coursework again.

And as of 2014, PAs have a 10-year certification maintenance process, reports the NCCPA. This 10-year period includes five two-year cycles during which all certified PAs have to log 100 Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits online and submit a certification maintenance fee. By the end of the 10th year, PA-C designees must have passed a recertification exam to maintain high standards of knowledge and competence.

So basically, although the schooling process was already difficult, PAs are required to keep learning. And they’re more than willing to do so. Rittle shares that over 96 percent of PAs maintain certification throughout their career.

Mindy Evangelisti, MMS (Master of Medical Science), PA-C, who has been practicing urgent care in Denver, CO for about 12 years, tells ENTITY how she has to work hard to be updated on everything.

“We do continuing education credits all the time to make sure we’re up-to-date on the latest antibiotic trend and which medications work for which high-blood pressure patient,” Evangelisti says. “It’s not a one-time certification and then you’re done. For the sake and health of our patients, we have to keep learning.”

Luckily, the rigorous education process pays off because PAs are in high demand and the job pays well.

ENTITY shares why PA Week is great

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In the last six years, the number of working PAs has increased by 44 percent. In 2016, around 115,000 PAs worked in each of America’s 50 states, according to the 2016 Statistical Profile of Certified Physician Assistants annual report by the NCCPA.

However, the NCCPA still feels more are needed to better streamline the process of getting as many people medical help as possible. 

PA employment is expected to rise 30 percent from 2014 to 2024, according to Bureau of Labor statistics. The United States Department of Labor website also states, the increase is “much faster than the average for all occupations” and they attribute the increase to the growing need for healthcare services and patient care.

The Bureau of Labor statistics also states that the median salary for PAs in 2016 was $101,480.

What are your work duties once you become a PA?

ENTITY shares why PA Week is great

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You may be wondering, if a PA is required to undergo extensive schooling and certifications, what do they do when they actually secure a job?

PAs have a wide range of responsibilities. Some of the most common are:

  • Examining patients and recording their medical history
  • Analyzing X-rays, MRIs, CT scans and lab work
  • Assisting in and performing surgical procedures
  • Administering medication and injections
  • Diagnosing patients
  • Treating illnesses and injuries
  • Sharing preventative knowledge
  • Writing prescriptions
  • Teaching and training PA students

A PA’s responsibilities also depend on where they practice and their chosen specialty. PAs in the military or more rural areas, for instance, may be allotted more responsibility due to a shortage of physicians. In fact, the 2016 NCCPA report shows that 70 percent of certified PAs work in specialties outside of primary care.

Luebke, who practiced orthopedic surgery for 10 years in Appleton, Wisconsin, says she spent about half of her time evaluating, diagnosing and setting up treatment plans for patients. The other half was spent assisting in and performing surgeries.

“I’ve assisted in joint replacements, ACL reconstructions, rotator cuff repairs, hip fractures and other traumas,” Luebke says. “I would actually make the incision and do the initial work of the procedure. Then the surgeon would come in and do the main body of the work. At the end, I would close, which means putting in all the various layers of sutures, stitches, all the way to finishing the surgery.”

And because PA and physician training is so similar, the two often perform the same work.

“Whatever a physician can do, they can delegate to a PA within reason,” Evangelisti also tells ENTITY. “A neurosurgeon wouldn’t delegate brain surgery to a PA. However, PAs could definitely assist in it, as long as they had the skills and prior training. I’ve seen PAs doing spinal epidurals, which are pretty technically difficult procedures.”

But why choose PA school over medical school?

Why not?

PA programs are just as intellectually stimulating and just as competitive. Not only that, but many PAs that aren’t in surgical specialties are doing 90 to 100 percent of what their physician colleagues are doing, without the extra years of schooling.

Because PAs aren’t required to complete residency, they are able to work in their desired fields after certification. This way, they receive hands-on, on-the-job training right away.

“I wanted to get out and practice sooner,” Evangelisti says. “Sure doctors make more, but they also work more. I, however, love having a life. I work per diem so I pick up shifts in seven different clinics and I can work when I want to work. This way, I can travel, have a family and have a life.”

Not only that, but Evangelisti finished school much sooner than her physician colleagues and she’s been in practice for about 12 years. “I’m already that much further ahead of the game, and I have fewer student loans,” she adds. “And, I get to spend just as much time with patients. It’s a win-win, really.”

To add to these sentiments, President and CEO of NCCPA Dawn Morton-Rias, Ed.D, PA-C, tells ENTITY:

“The PA profession is a fulfilling and rewarding pathway for those who want to practice medicine but who would otherwise be deterred by the length and cost of medical school. It’s also the best choice for those who want the flexibility to practice in multiple specialties or to change specialties during their career – flexibility that is unique to the PA profession. It’s a growing profession with great prospects, and I love to recommend it to bright young people considering pathways in healthcare.”

So how can you celebrate PA Week?

ENTITY explains Physician Assistant Day

Photo via Instagram / @ itskendralynne

PA Week celebrations happen throughout the country during the first two weeks of October. Checking with local hospitals and PA organizations will lead you to events where you can celebrate PA accomplishments, network with medical professionals and gain knowledge related to personal health.

Donations can also be made to the PA Foundation. Its website states the money will be used to “empower PA engagement in philanthropic programs that improve health.”

ENTITY explains Physician Assistant Day

Aside from that, you can really just send a thank you to your local PAs. These people work hard to always deliver high-quality patient care.

“You’ll hear from a lot of people that they went into this because they want to help people. It’s kind of a cliché, but that’s really what it is,” Luebke said. “Working in this field is about seeing patients that have a need and meeting that need. It’s most fulfilling just knowing I’ve made a difference in somebody’s life with the skills I’ve worked hard to attain.”

And for that, we extend a sincere thank you to all of the hard-working and compassionate PAs. We are extremely grateful for your role in the medical field.

Edited by Angelica Pronto
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