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Clinical year and COVID-19


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On rotation 7 of 8 and graduate in May.  Seems like our program has come to a screeching halt.  Several people have been sent home and several(including myself) have had their rotation 8 canceled.  I'm sure every PA school is going through this, how is your program dealing with rotations?

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On rotation 7 of 8 and graduate in May.  Seems like our program has come to a screeching halt.  Several people have been sent home and several(including myself) have had their rotation 8 canceled.  I'm sure every PA school is going through this, how is your program dealing with rotations?

Still being sorted out. Have some patience; it’s probably the same everywhere.


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Good evening, PA-Ss!

Our rotations got cancelled last Thursday evening. Our expected grad date is July 31st but as of now we don't know if that's gonna happen or if we are gonna be delayed.

We are trying to keep a positive stance and to take this time to prepare for the PANCE and to do small study groups using apps such as Zoom, WhatsApp, Skype, among others.

If you need any help or words of encouragement, please keep in touch.

Wishing you the best and hoping you are able to graduate on time 🙂

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A PA student may or may not be a useful extra pair of hands.  Based on my experience precepting PA students it will depend on many things:

  • Availability of PPE
  • Can the PA student be presumed or verified virus free, especially since they were recently at a different medical location
  • What kinds of tasks need to be done?  Are there ones which can be delegated to a mostly trained person who still has limited experience - both overall and and the site?

If a site is focusing on keeping its head above water, the student may not be a net help.

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Was notified that our summative exam will likely be delayed as well as our graduation. I was suspended from my second rotation today(first one was hospitalist then got placed outpatient internal med). Kinda just expecting the worst at this point in terms of finishing in our expected timeline. Nothing else to do

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Spoke to some medical students and their rotations are being cancelled as well, but their board is having them do modules / online virtual things for credit during this time. Can PAEA do that for us as well, just in case we get pulled from a rotation!? Seems beneficial for the student and program so that momentum doesnt stop completely!!

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1 hour ago, Quinn13 said:

Spoke to some medical students and their rotations are being cancelled as well, but their board is having them do modules / online virtual things for credit during this time. Can PAEA do that for us as well, just in case we get pulled from a rotation!? Seems beneficial for the student and program so that momentum doesnt stop completely!!

You should absolutely do modules, read, and self-study at home, but I don’t know if that should “count for credit.” It’s a huge inconvenience to graduate late, but there’s really no at-home substitute for the hands-on experience you get from quality clinical rotations.

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2 hours ago, EastCoastPA said:

You aren't missing a thing, we're graduating now into all the Pearson centers all being closed for the foreseeable future so we can't take the PANCE. They pushed everyone over a month out and it's likely just the beginning from what I hear.

Then they need to waive the PANCE or reopen the testing centers as mission critical. That's just stupid.

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15 minutes ago, EastCoastPA said:

Any ideas of what we can do / who we can bother about this? My state doesn't even have a temporary license option (MD).

I don't.  My medical board does have a temp/interim permit process.  My default guess would be to beg through your state society.

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Happy Sunday, PA-Cs and PA-Ss!

I will host a zoom meeting on Monday (tomorrow) and would love to meet you there and discuss the latest events as well as to encourage each other.

Additionally, we can share what our Programs and ourselves personally are doing at this time to keep current with the knowledge and skills we have acquired so far in our PA School journey.

Time options for tomorrow are 10:30am, 1:30pm, 9:30pm. Please let me know if you are interested in participating and I will send you the link. My email address is kele.ferreira001@mymdc.net

I attached here the COVID-19 statement released by the ARC-PA on Friday because I believe all of us must keep up with their actions to keep PA schools up and running and to help us graduate on time. We will talk more about this during the meeting.

Looking forward to receiving your email.

Thanks and don't lose hope. Have a productive day.

Kele

Coronavirus-guidelines-Statement-from-ARC-PA-03.20.2020-REVISED-1.pdf

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On 3/19/2020 at 8:56 AM, Quinn13 said:

Spoke to some medical students and their rotations are being cancelled as well, but their board is having them do modules / online virtual things for credit during this time. Can PAEA do that for us as well, just in case we get pulled from a rotation!? Seems beneficial for the student and program so that momentum doesnt stop completely!!

I think didactics could continue with online learning, but credit for rotations, in my opinion, shouldn't be substituted for this. (Though pushing forward with didactics while clinicals are on hold would just create a logjam so it's best if everything is on pause.) Clinicals need to be in person with you laying hands on a patient. There is no substitute for that.

PAEA can do whatever they like, but they aren't the accrediting body for schools so it really doesn't matter what they say. Just use this time for self-study and work for Doordash to pick up some extra cash.

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Im curious... what is happening with everyone's electives? Given that elective surgeries/procedures are on hold. 

I'm finishing up my didactic year this semester, and we were slated to start our rotations in May 2020. With everything that is going on, our first two have been made into virtual rotations. I understand that this is the best thing that can be done with everything going on. However, this is being done at the expense of our elective rotations. My program has 10 total rotations, two for electives and three for primary care. My program is making our first two rotations count as our electives, and they're being done virtually. I was really hoping to do my electives in ortho surgery and IR, with hopes of working in either of these fields in the future. But I fear those prospects are gone now that I can't rotate in either field. I have no shame admitting that I have been crying non-stop about this since I got the news this evening. I've reached out to my program director to see if an elective can be preserved, possibly for spring of 2021. I was just curious to know how things are going for everyone else. 

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A group of students put together a petition to open up Pearson exam centers again if you all are interested in signing! It would be greatly appreciated. They are currently opening them up for nurses to take the NCLEX in a limited capacity and we feel they should open them for PAs as well!  https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/open-pearson-vue-testing-centers-allow-physician-assistants-take-their-board-exams-and-help-fight-covid-19?fbclid=IwAR1Um2jWb_QXRWfhsDDd-S-TYT64Q8pbCWEqUMN9i-m6DKTy0xz07ow2UhU

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NCCPA just sent out a press release saying that "some" Pearson-View centers will be open for PANCE and PANRE:

Greetings to PANCE and PANRE Candidates:
 

The NCCPA staff and I know that this is a challenging time for everyone, and we appreciate your patience. 
 

We are pleased to announce that test delivery is now available for essential medical service providers, such as the PAs, at a subset of Pearson VUE test centers across the United States. Not all test centers will be immediately open due to factors such as local government guidance, business operations, staff availability, and the supply of cleaning and disinfectant materials. Your health and safety are paramount for both NCCPA and Pearson VUE alike and more test centers will be available as soon as feasible based on the factors above.
 

Pearson VUE’s test centers are following government guidelines for social distancing and limiting the number of individuals, including staff, in the test center at any time. As a result of these measures, appointment availability will be extremely limited. Also, because the situation rapidly changes as this pandemic impacts different areas of our country, the list of open test centers may be revised as additional centers are added or as others close. Please continue to check for appointment availability often as Pearson VUE works to increase availability as quickly as possible.
 

In addition to social distancing, Pearson VUE has advised that they are cleaning and disinfecting the open test centers, including all objects candidates interact with, such as scanners, keyboards, and locker fobs, with increased frequency and between each test taker. You will be allowed to bring a face mask and/or protective gloves to wear during your exam appointment if you wish to do so. Please note: you will be asked to briefly remove the mask during the check-in process to verify your identity and take your photo. 
 

If you have applied for PANCE or PANRE and have received your exam acknowledgement notice, please visit Pearson VUE’s web site at PearsonVUE.com to schedule (or reschedule, if your exam date was previously canceled) your exam online. If you need to contact Pearson VUE by phone, please be patient, as they are experiencing longer wait times than usual due to the level of support needed during this time. As always, the NCCPA is standing by to answer any questions you may have, as well.  Please feel free to reach out to us at nccpa@nccpa.net.
 

Thank you for your patience as NCCPA and Pearson VUE work through these unprecedented times. We want you to know that we are doing all we can to support you in your important role as health care providers — especially during this time of critical need. 
 

Best regards,
 

Dawn Morton-Rias, EdD, PA-C

NCCPA President/CEO

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  • 4 weeks later...
On 3/26/2020 at 10:01 PM, FormerFashionDesigner said:

Im curious... what is happening with everyone's electives? Given that elective surgeries/procedures are on hold. 

I'm finishing up my didactic year this semester, and we were slated to start our rotations in May 2020. With everything that is going on, our first two have been made into virtual rotations. I understand that this is the best thing that can be done with everything going on. However, this is being done at the expense of our elective rotations. My program has 10 total rotations, two for electives and three for primary care. My program is making our first two rotations count as our electives, and they're being done virtually. I was really hoping to do my electives in ortho surgery and IR, with hopes of working in either of these fields in the future. But I fear those prospects are gone now that I can't rotate in either field. I have no shame admitting that I have been crying non-stop about this since I got the news this evening. I've reached out to my program director to see if an elective can be preserved, possibly for spring of 2021. I was just curious to know how things are going for everyone else. 

My program started in January so I was on my third rotation when we were pulled from rotations. We also have two virtual online courses that will replace our electives. It is unfortunate, as my electives were also in fields I wish to practice. However, the hope is that we can graduate on time - and if not, 2 months sooner by doing things this way. 

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