Will Pay for Preceptorship

[rev ronin]

In my particular program there are no men with children, only women. As a rule, however, programs must not be allowed or have an expectation to separate families due to clinicals regardless of the student being a mother or a father.

Got some news for you... All rotations separate families. You're drawing an artificial line between time and distance.

 

Remember that thing about "salary, location, specialty... pick two"?  Clinical rotations work the same way.  Any artificial gerrymandering of rotations into a specific distance of school limits the school's ability to provide quality rotations.  Sure, some programs can choose to do that, and use that as a selling point, but what basis do you have of saying NO PA school should have such an option?

 

Further, med school rotations do so, so why should PA school rotations be any different?  There is already a clinical option for those who want to keep their families and jobs close by: NP school.

[AliB]

My program does provide housing for THEIR rotation sites that are further than the county and immediately adjacent counties where the school is located.  

 

The Clinical Handbook makes it clear that this is a courtesy only ... and that provided housing is for the student only (no pets either), and it may be shared space (separate rooms, but males and females might be in the same apartment, for example).  Travel is our responsibility and expense.  Many sites do provide meals during working hours, but again, there's no obligation.  However, often more than one student is in a common location so it is conceivable that students can share expenses just as many do during didactic year.  I'm a single parent (of 4 still at home), but I do not expect any special treatment for it.  My personal obligations were my choice (2 of the 4 weren't in the plan, :) , but again, my choice!).  I'm a lot more concerned with getting the best clinical experiences I can get!  I'll do what I need to do to be a responsible parent and I know that I'm very fortunate that I have a good support system in place to help me.  

[fakingpatience]

^  That's how my program works as well.  We have to do 3 rotations in rural areas, with the option to do more, and any rotation the school asigns to us housing is provided in the area (the exception being a few out of state rotations we can specifically select and have to provide housing for).  When I was deciding between schools, the availability of clinical rotations and electives became the deciding factor to the program I chose.  

 

I worry about the ethics of a student paying a preceptor for a rotation, for all the issues listed by pervious posters.   You are paying an incredible amount for tuition (regardless of where you attend).  Paying a preceptor should not be an added cost.  In addition, what type of president is this setting for future students?  Will rotation sites go to the highest bidders/ most financially capable students?  

[Guest Paula]

In my particular program there are no men with children, only women. As a rule, however, programs must not be allowed or have an expectation to separate families due to clinicals regardless of the student being a mother or a father.

 

 

Huh?  Is this the dilution of the PA profession and lowering the standards and expectations? I lived away from my family for the first semester of PA school and commuted home on weekends.  My kids were 9, 13, and 15.  They survived.  My husband survived.  I did not expect any special treatment just because I was a mother. 

[MT2PA]

Many women in my class (a majority are women, perhaps 85%+) are married and have one or more kids. I can't imagine them wanting or being OK with leaving their kids behind for a week or even a day.

 

IMO, that's something you have to assume will happen when you sign up for the ride that is PA school.  If you can't handle it, sorry, you shouldn't be attending at this point in your life then.  Or you need to find that rare program that does all of it's rotations in one site so you know you aren't moving.

 

Any person who applies to PA school should expect to play by the rules.  You know you have a clinical year.  You know you may have to travel.  You know this ahead of time.  Not wanting or being okay with leaving family and children....well, then don't go to PA school.

[Gordon, PA-C]

The bottom line is is that it is OUTRAGEOUS for any PA or MD program to open if it can't provide full clinical training at zero extra cost to the student (beyond tuition).  If a program can't do that, then it shouldn't exist.  PERIOD.

 

The glut of new schools (both PA, MD, and DO) is responsible for this.  When you try to open schools in Podunk Arkansas population 20k then you are going to run into this problem and the school's response is to throw up their hands and say "that's a YOU problem" to the students.

 

It's 100% shameful.  

 

Nobody should attend any of these third tier trash programs which can't provide the proper education.

[swooshie1]

The bottom line is is that it is OUTRAGEOUS for any PA or MD program to open if it can't provide full clinical training at zero extra cost to the student (beyond tuition).  If a program can't do that, then it shouldn't exist.  PERIOD.

 

The glut of new schools (both PA, MD, and DO) is responsible for this.  When you try to open schools in Podunk Arkansas population 20k then you are going to run into this problem and the school's response is to throw up their hands and say "that's a YOU problem" to the students.

 

It's 100% shameful.  

 

Nobody should attend any of these third tier trash programs which can't provide the proper education.

 

 

 

It's not just a problem of "third tier trash programs" - I'm a fairly recent Medex grad and our clinical year was ridiculously disorganized; few students in my class had more than one rotation site nailed down when didactic finished. my clinical advisor flat out told me they didn't have enough rotation sites for the number of students in the program, using this as the explanation for why he was having trouble finding me both a surgical rotation and an inpatient rotation;  "don't worry, we'll get you something, the worse thing that will happen is this might delay graduation ... but you won't be expected to pay extra tuition" -  half of my rotation sites were coordinated 0-2 weeks prior to my needing to be on site.  IMO all it takes is ONE person not doing their job as they should and the entire clinical year can be a cluster.

[Guest ERCat]

I get that the school is responsible to find rotation sites and they shouldn't charge for that rotation... But are some of you guys saying that students should not incur the cost of housing during rotations? My program sent us all around the state and while they offered housing options none of them were free. In one rotation - just one - I had to pay 900.00 for the condo for one month. A couple others were maybe 300 a month, and the rest were within driving distance. No one really got free housing unless the hospital offered it.