Where are we going with the PA profession!!! seriously!!!

[TangoDown]

What about PA's who are commissioned with the USPHS? I would assume their scope of practice is similar to the military's seeing as they function within federal guidelines.

 

Curious because I like what the USPHS does and am strongly considering it. Of course, I'd assume experiences may vary greatly seeing as the PHS has so many roles (DOD psych/brain trauma, IHS, BOP, FDA, CDC, Coast Guard medicine, etc).

[EMEDPA]

What about PA's who are commissioned with the USPHS? I would assume their scope of practice is similar to the military's seeing as they function within federal guidelines.

 

Curious because I like what the USPHS does and am strongly considering it. Of course, I'd assume experiences may vary greatly seeing as the PHS has so many roles (DOD psych/brain trauma, IHS, BOP, FDA, CDC, Coast Guard medicine, etc).

PHS is a great career. I looked into it several times but am now too old to be comissioned....:(

[TangoDown]

PHS is a great career. I looked into it several times but am now too old to be comissioned....:(

 

Just checked their website. Apparently they haven't been accepting applications for PAs since 2011 as they fall under the same category as dental hygienist and medical technologist. They are taking NPs for mental health though...as well as physicians for everything else...

 

http://www.usphs.gov/profession/healthservices/clinicalcare/

[Guest Paula]

Just checked their website. Apparently they haven't been accepting applications for PAs since 2011 as they fall under the same category as dental hygienist and medical technologist. They are taking NPs for mental health though...as well as physicians for everything else...

 

http://www.usphs.gov/profession/healthservices/clinicalcare/

 

Here is another example where PAs are put into a category where we do not belong. We are not allied health professionals. It is the assistant portion of our title that is misunderstood.

[TangoDown]

Here is another example where PAs are put into a category where we do not belong. We are not allied health professionals. It is the assistant portion of our title that is misunderstood.

 

They throw pods and optometrists under this category too. Really weird.

[Timon]

Loma Linda lists their PA program under Allied Health Professions as well.

 

http://www.llu.edu/allied-health/sahp/pa/index.page

[EMPAhopeful]

Loma Linda lists their PA program under Allied Health Professions as well.

 

http://www.llu.edu/allied-health/sahp/pa/index.page

 

Many schools do. Many hospitals also list PA jobs under "allied health". Very common.

[TangoDown]

Many schools do. Many hospitals also list PA jobs under "allied health". Very common.

 

It's just weird that the USPHS is hurting for physicians but won't hire PAs (they will hire psych NPs though). And they lumped them in within a wide category of professions and then closed off the whole category.

 

They are looking for TMI specialists too (neuropsychologists, physicians, psych NPs that work with TMIs), but no mention of PAs.

[Houstonian]

The hospital is being overly restrictive. However, are the administrators just now creating new restrictions, or did you simply not bother to read the Medical Staff Bylaws before you took the job?

 

I would check with CAPA on at least one thing, however--if state law does not require the physician's physical presence in the hospital, perhaps the hospital could be challenged on their policy.

 

My advice is to relocate to a more PA-supportive regulatory climate.

[Febrifuge]

Loma Linda lists their PA program under Allied Health Professions as well.

 

http://www.llu.edu/allied-health/sahp/pa/index.page

At my old school, the (Top-20-ranked) PA program isn't part of the Medical School (and btw, the MD program is largely considered a "safety" for med school applicants), it's part of the "College of Health Sciences."

 

...Which is a whole lot better than its old name, the "School of Related Professions."

[EMEDPA]

At my old school, the (Top-20-ranked) PA program isn't part of the Medical School (and btw, the MD program is largely considered a "safety" for med school applicants), it's part of the "College of Health Sciences."

 

...Which is a whole lot better than its old name, the "School of Related Professions."

when I was at hahnemann we were part of the school of "health sciences and humanities".

my ms from nebraska is from the "college of medicine" and my doctoral program is in the "college of health sciences"

[bradtPA]

when I was at hahnemann we were part of the school of "health sciences and humanities".

my ms from nebraska is from the "college of medicine" and my doctoral program is in the "college of health sciences"

 

 

We have long been stepchildren that they have had trouble placing.

 

In the Air Force 30 years ago, the docs were in the medical corps, nurses the nursing corps, the PAs were placed in the biological science corps with the pharmacists, optometrists, and physical therapists.

[bradtPA]

when I was at hahnemann we were part of the school of "health sciences and humanities".

my ms from nebraska is from the "college of medicine" and my doctoral program is in the "college of health sciences"

 

 

We have long been stepchildren that they have had trouble placing.

 

In the Air Force 30 years ago, the docs were in the medical corps, nurses the nursing corps, the PAs were placed in the biological science corps with the pharmacists, optometrists, and physical therapists.

[bradtPA]

when I was at hahnemann we were part of the school of "health sciences and humanities".

my ms from nebraska is from the "college of medicine" and my doctoral program is in the "college of health sciences"

 

 

We have long been stepchildren that they have had trouble placing.

 

In the Air Force 30 years ago, the docs were in the medical corps, nurses the nursing corps, the PAs were placed in the biological science corps with the pharmacists, optometrists, and physical therapists.

[bradtPA]

when I was at hahnemann we were part of the school of "health sciences and humanities".

my ms from nebraska is from the "college of medicine" and my doctoral program is in the "college of health sciences"

 

 

We have long been stepchildren that they have had trouble placing.

 

In the Air Force 30 years ago, the docs were in the medical corps, nurses the nursing corps, the PAs were placed in the biological science corps with the pharmacists, optometrists, and physical therapists.

[L.K.]

move to a pa friendly state and you will be fine. northern ca is NOT pa friendly in any way and never has been. I left 14 years ago when they were posting jobs that said " PAs will only be consaidered if no NP applicants apply". seriously.

try WA, VT, NH, ME, MA, MT, WY, OK, etc...the more rural the better....

 

So sorry this happened to you Ryan! Can't believe how ignorant and unprofessional their decision was.

 

Couldn't agree more EMEDPA! I live in Nor CA and have no way to move due to my family situation and while I am fine in my UC, there are none of us doing anything substantial at the local hospitals. Those PA's that do round only do so with the on-site supervision of the specialist/hospitlist MD's and it is going to be a long road to make strides in this hospital system. It gets depressing that NP's have such an advantage due to their lobby when we end up doing the same job. My NP friend just told me that while I will be recerting for my PA-C, she only had to certify once and then never again. WTH?

[L.K.]

move to a pa friendly state and you will be fine. northern ca is NOT pa friendly in any way and never has been. I left 14 years ago when they were posting jobs that said " PAs will only be consaidered if no NP applicants apply". seriously.

try WA, VT, NH, ME, MA, MT, WY, OK, etc...the more rural the better....

 

So sorry this happened to you Ryan! Can't believe how ignorant and unprofessional their decision was.

 

Couldn't agree more EMEDPA! I live in Nor CA and have no way to move due to my family situation and while I am fine in my UC, there are none of us doing anything substantial at the local hospitals. Those PA's that do round only do so with the on-site supervision of the specialist/hospitlist MD's and it is going to be a long road to make strides in this hospital system. It gets depressing that NP's have such an advantage due to their lobby when we end up doing the same job. My NP friend just told me that while I will be recerting for my PA-C, she only had to certify once and then never again. WTH?

[L.K.]

move to a pa friendly state and you will be fine. northern ca is NOT pa friendly in any way and never has been. I left 14 years ago when they were posting jobs that said " PAs will only be consaidered if no NP applicants apply". seriously.

try WA, VT, NH, ME, MA, MT, WY, OK, etc...the more rural the better....

 

So sorry this happened to you Ryan! Can't believe how ignorant and unprofessional their decision was.

 

Couldn't agree more EMEDPA! I live in Nor CA and have no way to move due to my family situation and while I am fine in my UC, there are none of us doing anything substantial at the local hospitals. Those PA's that do round only do so with the on-site supervision of the specialist/hospitlist MD's and it is going to be a long road to make strides in this hospital system. It gets depressing that NP's have such an advantage due to their lobby when we end up doing the same job. My NP friend just told me that while I will be recerting for my PA-C, she only had to certify once and then never again. WTH?

[UGoLong]

That we talk about the good and bad parts of the country for PA practice, the name of the profession, and in what department our program was in are probably more symptoms of a problem than they are the underlying cause. And no, I don't have a solution in mind.

[UGoLong]

That we talk about the good and bad parts of the country for PA practice, the name of the profession, and in what department our program was in are probably more symptoms of a problem than they are the underlying cause. And no, I don't have a solution in mind.

[UGoLong]

That we talk about the good and bad parts of the country for PA practice, the name of the profession, and in what department our program was in are probably more symptoms of a problem than they are the underlying cause. And no, I don't have a solution in mind.

[GREEN]

That we talk about the good and bad parts of the country for PA practice, the name of the profession, and in what department our program was in are probably more symptoms of a problem than they are the underlying cause. And no, I don't have a solution in mind.

 

PA's For Tomorrow has the most clear mission statement I have seen. The AAPA seems to be the most dysfunctional and out-of-touch organization I have seen. Until they clean house, there is little hope.

[GREEN]

That we talk about the good and bad parts of the country for PA practice, the name of the profession, and in what department our program was in are probably more symptoms of a problem than they are the underlying cause. And no, I don't have a solution in mind.

 

PA's For Tomorrow has the most clear mission statement I have seen. The AAPA seems to be the most dysfunctional and out-of-touch organization I have seen. Until they clean house, there is little hope.

[GREEN]

That we talk about the good and bad parts of the country for PA practice, the name of the profession, and in what department our program was in are probably more symptoms of a problem than they are the underlying cause. And no, I don't have a solution in mind.

 

PA's For Tomorrow has the most clear mission statement I have seen. The AAPA seems to be the most dysfunctional and out-of-touch organization I have seen. Until they clean house, there is little hope.

[rpackelly]

California’s Independent Practice NP bills just passed out of committee this week. California’s unionized nurses have a huge war chest and these bills have a good chance of passing and being signed by Gov. Brown. This has the potential of dramatically impacting employment for California PAs. A decade ago or so, PAs in Cali had to have an approved supervising physician and that doc had to apply to the board and pay $$$$. NPs had to have collaborating physicians who did not need approval. That is the origin of the employment inequity; that and the huge power of the California Nurses Association within the legislature. An example of that power is the fact that Cali has the only law enforcing a minimum nurse/patient ratio in hospitals; nurses in California have the highest average compensation of any state.

 

Michigan also has seen independent practice NP bills introduced with much less success in the state legislature. As another poster pointed out, because the NPs deliberately removed themselves from the modernization bill two years ago, they do not have Schedule II permission in the outpatient setting whereas PAs do, and PAs can also sign any form that can be signed by an MD/DO and order PT. Additionally, unionization of nurse practice is not as common in MI as it is in California, which reduces the lobbying funds available to nursing in general.

 

Independent NP practice in California, the most populous US state, would have a vast and detrimental impact on PA standing there. AAPA and CAPA know this but the sheer number of nurses in california and their backing by organized labor really upsets a level playing field in terms of funding available for political lobbying. Whereas in many states the political clout of organized medicine is greater than that of organized nursing, in California nursing might have the edge. We as PAs do not need to be “protected” but we do deserve parity; we should not be discriminated against because we believe in physician involvement in all levels of health care. Unfortunately this long held strategy may well put us in danger in some states.