burnpac Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Received today via e-mail. Engaging in a Meaningful Discussion on a PA Name Change by Robert Wooten, AAPA President Over the years, the issue surfaces of whether the PA profession's name should remain "physician assistant"; or be changed. The name most prominently put forward as an alternative is "physician associate." That issue is, once again, the subject of discussion among a number of PAs. The Academy's Board is sensitive to the desire of those promoting action to move the issue forward. AAPA acknowledges the arguments on both sides and recognizes the legitimacy of the issue. However, the Academy's bylaws are quite clear that a policy issue of this importance and impact across the profession is the purview of AAPA's House of Delegates that serves as a forum for debate and dialogue on matters impacting the PA profession's continued growth and prominence in America's health care system. The Academy appreciates that this is an issue with pros and cons that must be carefully considered. On the one hand, among other arguments, proponents of a change point out that the title "associate": · is rooted in the historical origins of the profession · more accurately represents the relation between PAs and physicians as one of partnership and collegiality than "assistant" which may be viewed as relegating PAs to a subservient role · does not affect the PA's scope of practice nor is linked to a move for independent practice · allows the profession to retain the "PA" acronym On the other hand, those opposed to a change point out the challenges and costs associated with changing the profession's name, including: · statutory and/or regulatory language amendments on both the state and federal level which would require a long-term advocacy effort, based on the history of other health care organizations that have changed their name, (e.g., speech therapists to speech-language pathologists) · legal counsel for AAPA and for many PA constituent organizations to change governance documents · a national "re-branding" campaign, not just for AAPA, but also for every PA constituent organization · other pursuits on behalf of the profession may have to be delayed or deferred, unless PAs are willing to pay for these likely costs To help facilitate this debate, the Academy is including in its PA census survey questions on this subject to help inform any subsequent discussion among opposing views. The Academy may be able to assist in quantifying the cost impact that a name change would have on the profession. It can further serve as a clearing house for historic documents and data that may be useful as the subject is deliberated by the AAPA House of Delegates. AAPA also will continue its role to facilitate discussion on the matter in its publications, blogs and other forums. PA state and uniformed services chapters, as well as specialty organizations, caucuses and our student academy, are represented by PA delegates to the House and these individuals can offer action items for consideration. PAs interested in moving this issue forward should begin by making your delegate(s) aware of that interest, and provide background and details supporting your position for discussion in the AAPA House of Delegates. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akdEM Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 That seems like a pretty reasonable approach. It seems that the money and "hassle" issues are the biggest stumbling blocks. I wonder what the dollar amount would be to overcome these. If they were to be able to quote a price of, say, 200 for each PA currently working, would it be possible to finance a name change? I have no idea what the actual figure would have to be, but it seems to me that putting a realistic price tag on making the change would be a great first step toward making it happen. Divide that cost across the 75,000 or so PA's and it becomes fairly manageable. This is probably overly idealistic, but it is certainly within the realm of possibility with the proper leadership and communication. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LIPPER Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 If they were to be able to quote a price of, say, 200 for each PA currently working, would it be possible to finance a name change?. Are you saying there may be a faction that feels devoting the equivalent of one year's dues across the board for a name change...thus diverting all funds normally left towards marketing/lobbying etc....should in effect go to affecting a title change? I'm interested to see the cost return on investment estimate for that... Or should there be a $ affixed prior to moving foward? and if the $ can't be met, then the proposition abandoned? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted October 17, 2011 Moderator Share Posted October 17, 2011 a voluntary fund has been suggested as well. let's see what the census numbers look like and go from there....if it's overwhelmingly for or against that should help guide the decision process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted October 17, 2011 Moderator Share Posted October 17, 2011 a voluntary fund has been suggested as well. let's see what the census numbers look like and go from there....if it's overwhelmingly for or against that should help guide the decision process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andersenpa Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Are you saying there may be a faction that feels devoting the equivalent of one year's dues across the board for a name change...thus diverting all funds normally left towards marketing/lobbying etc....should in effect go to affecting a title change? I'm interested to see the cost return on investment estimate for that... Or should there be a $ affixed prior to moving foward? and if the $ can't be met, then the proposition abandoned? Yes, I believe there is a faction that feels that strongly. The AAPA census gets ~20,000 responses a yr as I recall. I would venture to guess that the response rate for a directed fund for the name change would surpass that. Even if it only matches that number....and if each PA gave $100... That's $2,000,000. Not a bad start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andersenpa Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Are you saying there may be a faction that feels devoting the equivalent of one year's dues across the board for a name change...thus diverting all funds normally left towards marketing/lobbying etc....should in effect go to affecting a title change? I'm interested to see the cost return on investment estimate for that... Or should there be a $ affixed prior to moving foward? and if the $ can't be met, then the proposition abandoned? Yes, I believe there is a faction that feels that strongly. The AAPA census gets ~20,000 responses a yr as I recall. I would venture to guess that the response rate for a directed fund for the name change would surpass that. Even if it only matches that number....and if each PA gave $100... That's $2,000,000. Not a bad start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hemegroup Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Wow. I can't believe this is really happening, pretty exciting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hemegroup Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Wow. I can't believe this is really happening, pretty exciting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vulgatus Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 The director of my program brought up an interesting point although I can't confirm how true it is. He said that a major roadblock with the name change comes from opening the laws for modification. He claims that opening the laws leaves them vulnerable to ANY change and there are those that would take advantage of the situation. Anyone know how true or plausible that is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vulgatus Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 The director of my program brought up an interesting point although I can't confirm how true it is. He said that a major roadblock with the name change comes from opening the laws for modification. He claims that opening the laws leaves them vulnerable to ANY change and there are those that would take advantage of the situation. Anyone know how true or plausible that is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andersenpa Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 The director of my program brought up an interesting point although I can't confirm how true it is. He said that a major roadblock with the name change comes from opening the laws for modification. He claims that opening the laws leaves them vulnerable to ANY change and there are those that would take advantage of the situation. Anyone know how true or plausible that is? I would ask if the same thing happened- if there was any regression in PA practice- when the title was changed from Physician's Assistant to Physician Assistant. Or how the practice acts changed for the multiple other professions who have changed their title such as Chiropracters > Chiropractic Physician, Naturopath > Naturopathic Physician, Chiropidists > Podiatrists. Another thought is that for the thousands of physicians that count on PA practice as it currently stands, what is their incentive to draw us back? Where is the benefit to the health systems that use PAs? And of course there is the simplicity of the cosmetic name change (from this point forth Physician Assistants will be known as Physician Associates).... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andersenpa Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 The director of my program brought up an interesting point although I can't confirm how true it is. He said that a major roadblock with the name change comes from opening the laws for modification. He claims that opening the laws leaves them vulnerable to ANY change and there are those that would take advantage of the situation. Anyone know how true or plausible that is? I would ask if the same thing happened- if there was any regression in PA practice- when the title was changed from Physician's Assistant to Physician Assistant. Or how the practice acts changed for the multiple other professions who have changed their title such as Chiropracters > Chiropractic Physician, Naturopath > Naturopathic Physician, Chiropidists > Podiatrists. Another thought is that for the thousands of physicians that count on PA practice as it currently stands, what is their incentive to draw us back? Where is the benefit to the health systems that use PAs? And of course there is the simplicity of the cosmetic name change (from this point forth Physician Assistants will be known as Physician Associates).... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted October 18, 2011 Moderator Share Posted October 18, 2011 within the last year several states have gone from physician's assistant to physician assistant or certified to licensed and nothing changed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted October 18, 2011 Moderator Share Posted October 18, 2011 within the last year several states have gone from physician's assistant to physician assistant or certified to licensed and nothing changed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primadonna22274 Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 Georgia JUST managed to drop the 's in its PA practice act about 2009 after working on that bugaboo for a very long time...and it is generally considered one of the best states for PA practice in the southeast. Be prepared for the long haul...but nothing worth doing is ever easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
primadonna22274 Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 Georgia JUST managed to drop the 's in its PA practice act about 2009 after working on that bugaboo for a very long time...and it is generally considered one of the best states for PA practice in the southeast. Be prepared for the long haul...but nothing worth doing is ever easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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