corpsman89

With the ever looming/advancing/encroaching NP advancement, and the ever slowly moving/stagnant PA advancement, I am beginning to heavily consider which specialty is the most PA friendly, and which specialty is least threatened by the new online, yet fully independent FNP and ACNP grad. Obviously as a student currently on rotations my number one priority in terms of jobs is finding a specialty that I enjoy working in. But aside from this I am very concerned with NPs having an advantage over me due to simple administrative reasons, hence why I am taking this into consideration. Right off the bat I would assume most surgical specialties would be mostly safe (mainly ortho, but vascular, cardiothoracic, general, etc) due to the additional step that NPs have to take in order to be involved in 1st assisting (RNFA). For a while now though I have assumed the ER was a generally safe place for PAs, but it seems that many FNPs are taking the next step and getting their ENP certification so they can work in any ER, and some ERs are simply ok with a FNP who can't even suture. Any thoughts?

Baby steps. I think it would be incredibly naive to believe that we would see change right away. Things take time. Especially when it comes to changing the title of an entire profession--something I don't think has ever happened before in the age of social media. Yes, I think AAPA should be blasting emails to members for the support of H.R. 5506. They should also have it pinned on their Facebook page as well as their website but O'well. Yes, they should also have the name change near the top or at least be mentioning it more on social media, email, and on their website, but o'well. At least these things are an actual possibility, and not just stuff we are talking about here on this website. They are becoming reality and they have a much better chance of achieving this reality if more members would fully support AAPA and unify the profession similar to what NPs are doing. We're adults. We should understand that not everything is perfect but at least AAPA is starting to make the right decisions.

Well that is great news for sure! I just wish they would promote it to everyday PAs a little better. I have heard absolutely nothing about it other when it was first introduced. Nothing from my school, social media, their website, emails from them. One big difference (in my opinion) is that many NPs seem to be very involved and informed in their legislative endeavors. I imagine the reason is that their professional organizations makes sure they know what is going on and how important it is. With that being said, it is apparent that AAPA has changed and is now charging hard for PAs and our advancement in the marketplace and our ability to treat more patients.

I'm mainly referring to direct entry DNP programs and the like. NPs in many states that graduate from programs like these with basically no real nursing experience are allowed to practice at the top of their scope, with zero oversight. THAT'S SCARY! And yes, I have a major problem with PA programs admitting students with hardly any experience. I believe that PA programs should only accept applicants with a MINIMUM of 2000 hours of QUALITY experience. But in the end at least we have some oversight. I think the perfect model would be oversight for ALL new PA/NPs (regardless of experience) (2-3 years), and then given a pseudo OTP/independence type situation there after.

Agreed. However, AAPA has practically done nothing to promote this other than their initial social media post. They should pin this to the top of their Facebook page. It should be on the front page of their website, and most importantly they should send a major email out to all members advocating for this bills passage. I have serious doubts that it will get passed, either through superior opposition or through no one advocating for the bill.

Agree with the name change. I also abhor the "just say PA" message and do not like changing the name to Physician Associate because it will keep the "PA" initials. I have been voting for Medical Practitioner for a while know. It gives us a unique path. We are Practitioners who are trained within the medical model.... Unlike NPs. It also would create a conversation not only within the medical field but within the general community about who we are and why we are NOT assistants.

I don't necessarily like to "tear down" another profession but NPs have legitimately pushed their authority, clout, and power too far. The very fact that PAs have far superior, standardized and verifiably higher quality training, yet are restricted legislatively compared to NPs proves this point. I feel like many PAs are being sort of 'forced' into the idea of independence from Physicians, not because we believe it is best for patient care, but because of competition from NPs. Really it's the only way for us to survive, because the current trends and signs show that PAs are being outpaced by NPs due to their full practice authority and other legislative wins. In a perfect world, NPs and PAs would both operate in an OTP type environment.

Yeah anything that includes "Physician Assistant Studies" is a ridiculous sounding degree. DMS should be the preferred degree and I hope more schools get on board with this degree. PA degrees should also should be uniform and I think MMS would be the best degree. MMS -> DMS. Clear progression and a unified profession.

I saw this too, but it is not nearly as legitimate as the NP PDF that includes references, authors, etc.

I noticed that AAENP (American Academy of Emergency Nurse Practitioners) came out with a nicely done, to-the-point practice standards PDF for all ENPs to use when applying for a new EM job that maybe has never hired a NP to work in the ER. My question. Does AAPA or SEMPA have any similar document that can be used to highlight what PAs are capable of performing in the ER? This link is the ENP practice standards. http://aaenp-natl.starchapter.com/images/downloads/Practice/practice_standards_for_the_emergency_nurse_practitioner.pdf?platform=hootsuite

Totally agree. Whenever I think of anything related to the advancement of our profession, I think of it in the eyes of the general public. Yes, assistant needs to change. No one wants to see an assistant for their medical care, and no, they don't care about our training, education, standards, blah, blah, blah, they know we are an assistant and an assistant is NOT someone who should be taking complete comprehensive care of someone.

Yet another example.

Student here, but...What about online resources? WikEM.org Fpnotebook.com Both of these have been pretty helpful for me so far.

Nah, I think he said it about as perfect as it could have been said.

lol. Happy wife = happy life. I have been telling my wife I want to get a paramotor when I get done with PA school. Her response? Just make sure we have good life insurance and you can do whatever dumb ass thing you want.