Moderator EMEDPA Posted October 13, 2012 Moderator Share Posted October 13, 2012 Physician assistants play vital role October 9, 2012|By Angela Mesa-Taylor If someone were to ask you what a PA is, would you know? A group of physician assistant (PA) students at Nova Southeastern University recently posed this question to local shoppers, and, shockingly, most were unsure. Initially, this disconcerted me, but I took it as a sign that more needs to be done to enlighten the nation about this noble profession, the sole purpose of which is to make people healthier and happier! With Oct. 6 having been National PA Day, this seems like the perfect time. There are many misconceptions about PAs. Mostly, it’s thought that we run errands, act as medical assistants, or failed medical school. However, physician assistants are medically trained providers who, after two grueling years of graduate study, are nationally certified via the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) by meeting national standards of knowledge and clinical skills. Once certified, PAs care for their own patients, independently write prescriptions, perform and interpret medical tests, make diagnoses, and formulate and carry out treatment plans. Sounds a lot like a doctor, huh? While we are well-trained and highly competent healthcare providers, it is the partnership with our supervising physician that is the foundation of our profession. We focus on teamwork and can always count on our supervising physician if we need to discuss a complex case. Our goal is not to replace physicians, but to act as an extension of them. My patients’ concerns range from simple colds to more serious issues such as pneumonia and autism. The desire to make a difference led me to this profession, and I could not be more proud to be a part of a phenomenal health care team. Angela Mesa-Taylor, MPAS, PA-C, is an assistant professor at Nova Southeastern University and a pediatric physician assistant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmj11 Posted October 13, 2012 Share Posted October 13, 2012 Physician assistants play vital role October 9, 2012|By Angela Mesa-Taylor If someone were to ask you what a PA is, would you know? A group of physician assistant (PA) students at Nova Southeastern University recently posed this question to local shoppers, and, shockingly, most were unsure. Initially, this disconcerted me, but I took it as a sign that more needs to be done to enlighten the nation about this noble profession, the sole purpose of which is to make people healthier and happier! With Oct. 6 having been National PA Day, this seems like the perfect time. There are many misconceptions about PAs. Mostly, it’s thought that we run errands, act as medical assistants, or failed medical school. However, physician assistants are medically trained providers who, after two grueling years of graduate study, are nationally certified via the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) by meeting national standards of knowledge and clinical skills. Once certified, PAs care for their own patients, independently write prescriptions, perform and interpret medical tests, make diagnoses, and formulate and carry out treatment plans. Sounds a lot like a doctor, huh? While we are well-trained and highly competent healthcare providers, it is the partnership with our supervising physician that is the foundation of our profession. We focus on teamwork and can always count on our supervising physician if we need to discuss a complex case. Our goal is not to replace physicians, but to act as an extension of them. My patients’ concerns range from simple colds to more serious issues such as pneumonia and autism. The desire to make a difference led me to this profession, and I could not be more proud to be a part of a phenomenal health care team. Angela Mesa-Taylor, MPAS, PA-C, is an assistant professor at Nova Southeastern University and a pediatric physician assistant. I think these studies are important to define the problem. Did they post or publish their data? I would love to see the raw data. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
physasst Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 I think these studies are important to define the problem. Did they post or publish their data? I would love to see the raw data. I'd like to see their methodology....it doesn't sound particularly rigorous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted October 14, 2012 Author Moderator Share Posted October 14, 2012 I'd like to see their methodology....it doesn't sound particularly rigorous. Sounds like a random observational study, ( ie ask 500 random folks at the mall a question). although I don't think the results would be different if they asked 5000 people. this is not news. no one knows what a pa is unless they are former military or a va patient. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
physasst Posted October 14, 2012 Share Posted October 14, 2012 Sounds like a random observational study, ( ie ask 500 random folks at the mall a question). although I don't think the results would be different if they asked 5000 people. this is not news. no one knows what a pa is unless they are former military or a va patient. Yeah, but how were the questions structured, was there bias? What were the respondent characteristics? etc.etc.etc. Power isn't the only issue.....I'm glad that the PA students are getting some exposure to research, but this isn't great research. Perhaps it was better structured than I am thinking, I don't know without seeing it...but this sounds more like marketing research. This is a chronic problem for our profession..with the exception of a few talented PAs, quality research is lacking. I was speaking with a grant review officer for AHRQ the other day about a possible K award as a postdoctoral training grant. When we were speaking about PAs (I didn't tell him initially I was a PA, as it had nothing to do with that grant) and grant submissions, I asked him if they got a lot of grant submissions from PAs, he tried to put things delicately, but did state that they do get a small number of grant submissions from PAs....the problem being that the proposals put forward are of such poor quality and so poorly constructed, that very few of them ever make it past the initial review. He was trying to be very nice and political about it, but was being very honest. That to me at least, seems to be a big problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted October 14, 2012 Author Moderator Share Posted October 14, 2012 Folks for the most part don't go into pa school because they like research...with the possible exception of the pa/phd program at wake forest. not surprising that most pa's aren't good at it unless they have prior training or do a postgrad program that emphasizes research. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.