Ceciliah Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 One of the application questions asks, "Explain how you feel about the role of the Physician Assistant being a dependent practitioner?". Can anyone provide tips or suggestions on how I should go about answering this question? It seems simple enough but I'm not quite sure what kind of answer AdComm would be looking for. I had some ideas in mind but they didn't seem to tie in properly to the prompt and I'm pretty much stuck now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceciliah Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 One of the application questions asks, "Explain how you feel about the role of the Physician Assistant being a dependent practitioner?". Can anyone provide tips or suggestions on how I should go about answering this question? It seems simple enough but I'm not quite sure what kind of answer AdComm would be looking for. I had some ideas in mind but they didn't seem to tie in properly to the prompt and I'm pretty much stuck now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Steve Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Well...let's see...how about we change the question into a different form? 1. Are you comfortable having a supervising physician who can veto your decisions at anytime they want? Or do you find comfort in knowing that you always have a back up (in theory) when you need one? 2. Are you comfortable knowing that some states don't even let PAs write prescriptions and that owning your own practice is forbidden? Or do you not worry about those situations as you don't mind working for someone else for your continued carrier? 3. Are you comfortable knowing that NPs can practice independently with approx 600 hours of clinical training while a PA has 2000 hours of clinical training and still can't practice solo? Does the difference in laws affect you in any way personally or professionally? 4. Are you comfortable with being labeled as a doctor's helper? 5. Are you comfortable in your understanding that in many locations, especially in the western part of the country, that the term "dependent" is very loose? The reality being that some states/locations only require 5-10% chart review and that the term "dependent" is really a misnomer and doesn't truly apply. Are you ready to stand up in the face of those calling you a "dependent practitioner" and tell them that you only depend on a supervising physician for the paperwork aspect of your work, and that you are very comfortable standing behind your own work and don't rely on anyone to approve or disapprove of your independent work? To correctly pronounce "dependent practitioner" is to make the first word silent, and heavily accent the second word. Does that help you break the creative juices loose a bit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Steve Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Well...let's see...how about we change the question into a different form? 1. Are you comfortable having a supervising physician who can veto your decisions at anytime they want? Or do you find comfort in knowing that you always have a back up (in theory) when you need one? 2. Are you comfortable knowing that some states don't even let PAs write prescriptions and that owning your own practice is forbidden? Or do you not worry about those situations as you don't mind working for someone else for your continued carrier? 3. Are you comfortable knowing that NPs can practice independently with approx 600 hours of clinical training while a PA has 2000 hours of clinical training and still can't practice solo? Does the difference in laws affect you in any way personally or professionally? 4. Are you comfortable with being labeled as a doctor's helper? 5. Are you comfortable in your understanding that in many locations, especially in the western part of the country, that the term "dependent" is very loose? The reality being that some states/locations only require 5-10% chart review and that the term "dependent" is really a misnomer and doesn't truly apply. Are you ready to stand up in the face of those calling you a "dependent practitioner" and tell them that you only depend on a supervising physician for the paperwork aspect of your work, and that you are very comfortable standing behind your own work and don't rely on anyone to approve or disapprove of your independent work? To correctly pronounce "dependent practitioner" is to make the first word silent, and heavily accent the second word. Does that help you break the creative juices loose a bit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mktalon Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Don't over-analyze it. If you are familiar with what being a "dependent" practitioner entails you should have some feelings on the issue. Me personally, I have both positive and negative feelings about "dependency." I think it can be a great thing if there is consistent and supportive legislation that properly interprets its meaning, and if there is education available for the public about what it means. Wow, you could write two entire essays on just those issue alone.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mktalon Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Don't over-analyze it. If you are familiar with what being a "dependent" practitioner entails you should have some feelings on the issue. Me personally, I have both positive and negative feelings about "dependency." I think it can be a great thing if there is consistent and supportive legislation that properly interprets its meaning, and if there is education available for the public about what it means. Wow, you could write two entire essays on just those issue alone.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgbloke Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Steve, you are always so forthcoming with useful nuggets of knowledge and wisdom! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgbloke Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Steve, you are always so forthcoming with useful nuggets of knowledge and wisdom! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceciliah Posted January 28, 2012 Author Share Posted January 28, 2012 My application was actually to a Canadian school so some information may be different. I really appreciated all the help though - definitely gave me something to write about :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ceciliah Posted January 28, 2012 Author Share Posted January 28, 2012 My application was actually to a Canadian school so some information may be different. I really appreciated all the help though - definitely gave me something to write about :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.