NY4now Posted June 17, 2011 Share Posted June 17, 2011 At risk of asking the obvious, what are the main differences between the two? I guess what I really want to know is if the demand is similar for PA's in either specialty, is compensation similar, are the general conditions worked with similar, and do those specializing in neuro get the opportunity to get involved in any of the surgery? Can anyone suggest any further education beyond my PA school for specializing in Neuro or Neurosurgery? Might it be in my best interest as a new grad to start with neuro and then move over to neurosurgery, or are they both completely different in practice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texas2008pa Posted June 17, 2011 Share Posted June 17, 2011 They are completely different. I've worked in both. Neurosurg is focused on, well, surgery. There's the occasional diagnostic dilemma, but usually you are called on to consult on what to surgically do about "xyz". In Neurosurg you will see alot of trauma, both brain and spine. Tumors, NPH, Subdurals, spinal stenosis, etc... As a PA right out of school, I got to first assist in surgery and place ventriculostomies. In my case, compensation was NOT similar. I made $115K right out of school and now in neurology I'm making $85K. As a neurology PA you would not be assisting in surgery. To satisfy my procedural urges I do LPs in the office. So, if you are interested in surgery- try and find a neurosurg job. If you don't really like surgery but like more of the diagnosis and management aspect- go into neurology. I manage pts with everything from migraine, peripheral neuropathy, Parkinson's, ALS, muscular dystrophy, CIDP, dermatomyositis, myasthenia gravis, essential tremor, MS, and the list goes on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NY4now Posted June 17, 2011 Author Share Posted June 17, 2011 Thanks you. That gives me a lot of insight. Also, from my understanding the hours of neuro are closer to 9-5, and neurosurg has much longer, more demanding hours with more o/c, night, and weekend work. Is this the case? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texas2008pa Posted June 17, 2011 Share Posted June 17, 2011 Thanks you. That gives me a lot of insight. Also, from my understanding the hours of neuro are closer to 9-5, and neurosurg has much longer, more demanding hours with more o/c, night, and weekend work. Is this the case? You're absolutely right. I work 8:30 to 5 on average in neuro with no call or weekends. In neurosurg, the days started alot earlier and included trauma call. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdenning Posted June 17, 2011 Share Posted June 17, 2011 Do you like "thinking" or "doing?" Sounds goofy I know, but in neurology you're going to be evaluating problems and the effects of medications and other interventions. You need excellent exam skills and should be able to look at your patient in terms of their "function". But there are few procedures - unless you get to do EMGs, LPs, botox etc. If you want hands on procedure stuff, then neurosurgery is definitely the better option. I know a few neurosurgery PAs - none of them work less than 60-70 hours per week, they take call, and much of their time is in the OR. In neurology, the hours are a bit better controlled and I definitely don't take call. On the other hand, I miss doing procedures and find that I get tired sitting at my desk/computer all day. In our practice, my exam room is also my office, so I'm at the computer almost the entire time. But I enjoy what I do. You might also want to consider whether you would be working for one individual physician (or surgeon) and all their quirks, or do you want to be in a group practice. Both neuro and neurosurgery can offer that option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NY4now Posted June 17, 2011 Author Share Posted June 17, 2011 Thank you for your help, everyone! This is exactly the kind of info I was looking for! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donwinder Posted June 17, 2011 Share Posted June 17, 2011 Great info, thanks. I am about to get an offer for a general neuro PA position in a practice that previously had a PA and the main Dr actually was a PA before med school. Right now they cover inpatient and clinic, stroke alerts, do botox, EMG, etc. Typical stuff for neuro. I am not sure my what will be my exact role, pay, benefits, etc, but I just finished a rotation with them and had a great time. I am trying to do my last rotation with neurosurg team at that hospital to see which I like best because they are also needing another PA. Both places are very PA friendly, and even new grad PA friendly so I am not too worried about that. My concern is pay. I could also do family practice and get loan repayment but then stay at a primary care salary after that, or start out in neuro, a bit higher pay but what is the earning potential in general neuro? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted June 18, 2011 Moderator Share Posted June 18, 2011 There are also neuro and neurosurg postgrad pa residencies: www.appap.org Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.