Applying to PA school after finishing nursing program?

[PAGirl689]

I need some honest opinions, advice, perspectives, anything is welcome, but please no bashing or rude, inappropriate comments of course :)

I have been on this forum a long while back when applying to PA school, but didn't  succeed the first time. However, one of the programs I applied had offered me admission to their accelerated nursing program and I saw it as a given opportunity. Just finished my first semester with descent grades. Wasn't even close to easy especially with all the front loading, endless sleepless nights and frequent exams, but I survived and pulled out ok. Throughout the course, I have told people that my initial plan was to become a PA one day and people were saying why bother reapplying to PA school since there are many opportunities and several areas you can do in nursing, including becoming a NP. Obviously there is truth in that I did spend one night looking into it, especially the NP profession as it's very similar to the PA profession, but with some differences of course. However,  I can't shake my heart out of wanting to become a PA. Obviously becoming a NP would be more ideal for me since I'm already in nursing now and it would make sense to stick with it. However, I always wanted to be more in the medical model and do have an interest in surgery, which I do not think NP's are allowed to do (may be wrong on this, and correct me if I am). NP's are more focused on the patient, and can practice independently, while PA's/MD's are more onto treating the disease/injury/illness, and PA's need to be supervised under a MD (which is fine w/ me since I like colloboration more than being independent). On top of that, I have been preparing and committed to get to PA school for a long time, and when thinking about it, if I change paths, everything that I worked hard for in route of becoming a PA one day is all a waste of time and money (HCE, PA shadowing..etc). I still have the urge to go to PA school, but again, I keep thinking back and forth, would it be better to stay in nursing or go with PA which I spent years working towards to acheive? My heart says PA and I honestly don't feel any interest in becoming a NP, but there are times I feel like I don't know what I should do after finishing the nursing program. I'd like to hear feedback, perspectives..etc from anyone as I feel it'll guide me to decide what to do once I finish the accelerated nursing program.

[dannydude57]

First off, I think having a nursing background is great. We are exposed to a myriad of medications before entering PA school, making learning them later on easier. I had loads of clinically relevant patient care contact.

 

Choosing between PA and NP school I think is a personal journey, so I won't give pros and cons. Instead, I want to share some of my considerations when I was choosing. I notice many people focusing on each profession's clinical philosophy, but I think there is more to it than that. What is the training time? How much clinical time are you going to receive in school? How much do you get (on average) in a NP program vs PA program? What programs/resources are available? For me, I really wanted a program that offered a cadaver lab. In what specialty do you want to work? Which progression do you see dominates that specialty? I am really interested in Emergency Medicine, which is easier to practice in as a PA. This may change, because they are developing a NP specialty that focuses more on EM. Do you want lateral freedom (the ability to change specialties)? Do you want independent practice, and in what capacity will you get that? These questions were weighed when I was deciding what path I wanted to follow. The answer to these questions also provided great ammo when I was asked in my PA school interview "why did you want to be a PA instead of a NP?"

[parnemt]

After reading your post, it seems that you already know what you want to do. PA might not be the easier route, but it is better training.

[rcreek]

... NP's are more focused on the patient, and can practice independently, while PA's/MD's are more onto treating the disease/injury/illness, and PA's need to be supervised under a MD (which is fine w/ me since I like colloboration more than being independent) ...

 

First of all, does anybody really practice "independent" medicine? Every provider relies on a multidisciplinary network of healthcare professionals and specialists. The differences are seen when it comes down to issues of paperwork and billing. And sure, if you wanted to open your own practice (which can still be done as a PA by the way). It is worse in some states than others.

 

Most PAs really are very minimally "supervised". There are many PAs who see all their own patients all weeklong, and might only talk to or see their physician once. Many movements are also underway to change practice laws for PAs. For example, the VA system recently announced that PAs are now in collaborative relationships with Physicians. With the federal government being the largest employer of PAs, it could set real precedence elsewhere and in the private sector.

 

I take major issue with the statement that NPs are MORE focused on the patient. This is what many nurses/NPs like to say, touting it as something that makes their training somehow superior, and I have heard it frequently. This is simply not true.

 

When talking about compassion/patient-focus VS outstanding medical knowledge/understanding in practice, one does not come at the expense of the other. It is not a dichotomy. They compliment each other, and a good provider has both.

 

A good provider (NP, PA, or Physician) is focused on each and every patient and treats them with compassion, and utilizes their medical knowledge to the patient's benefit. The medical model of training provides a better understanding of pathologies, but how does that make a PA less sensitive and focused on the needs of their patient?

 

Many will tell you that the nursing model trains them to become more compassionate than those trained in the medical model. I contend that compassion is not something than can be taught in a class - it is a personality trait. You have it or you don't, and it can be strengthened through actual life experience.

 

Any of us who have been through the application and interview process know just how much effort PA programs make to select compassionate students with evidence of prior involvement helping the underserved. Furthermore, PAs are still trained to focus on their patients. Many of us have seen patient-focused PAs firsthand. I have also seen aloof NPs. It goes both ways.

 

Now, we need NPs in healthcare. But if you compare the NP training curriculum to the PA curriculum, with the exception of those programs that train both together, you would see how rigorous, demanding, and clinically oriented the PA curriculum is.