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Online Education Guide - What is a College Major? View College Majors - Alternative Medicine - Clinical Laboratory Science - Communication Disorders - Counseling - Dental Hygiene - EMT & Paramedic - Forensic Medicine - Gerontology - Health IT - Healthcare Administration - Healthcare Management - Health Promotion - Health Services - Life Care Planning - Long Term Care - Medical Informatics - Nursing - Nutrition & Food Science - Occupational Safety - Occupational Therapy - Pharmacy - Physical Therapy - Physician Assistant - Psychology - Public Health - Radiologic Science - Respiratory Therapy - RN to BSN - Sports Science |
Home | Career Pathways | Online Education Guide | Health & Medical Majors | Physician Assistant Online Education GuideGuide to College Majors in Physician AssistingWhat is a Physician Assistant?A physician's assistant (PA) is an integral part of healthcare service. Working in conjunction with a supervising physician, the PA plays a key role in offices, hospitals, and care facilities across the country. While medical assistants complete routine administrative, clinical, and clerical duties, physician assistants undertake formal training to provide a comprehensive range of healthcare services. With the support of the delegating physician, PAs provide preventative healthcare as well as therapeutic and diagnostic services. Physician's assistants take medical histories and update charts. They conduct physical examinations of patients and treat them. Physician's Assistants order and interpret diagnostic tests so they can diagnose patients and initiate therapy. A PA also treats minor injuries such as sprains, lacerations, or simple fractures. Conferring on treatment plans with physicians and/or other members of the health care team, physician assistants develop and implement programs of treatment and advise patients on prevention and therapy. They are also expected to oversee medical emergencies that may arise during their work. In all but three states, physician assistants may prescribe medication to patients. In addition, a PA may do inventory and order supplies for an office, hospital, or laboratory; many also supervise medical assistants and lab technicians. Finally, a physician assistant's job may entail making house calls, visitation to hospitals and nursing home facilities, or sharing time on call duty. While the supervising physician defines the role of a physician assistant in the clinical setting, all states have laws governing the range and scope of PA practice. As regulation and legislation vary from one state to another, an aspiring PA should look into the laws specific to the state in which he or she hopes to practice. Physician Assistant Career EducationUndergraduate and graduate degree programsAll states require PAs to complete a formal education program with an accredited school. Although criteria vary from program to program, most courses for physician assistants take between twenty-four and twenty-seven months to complete. Most such programs require at least two years of college and some experience in healthcare. Although the school does not always require them, most applicants to PA programs already hold a bachelor's or master's degree. There are a wide variety of career education programs from which to choose. At last count, according to the AAPA's Information Update: Projected Number of People in Clinical Practice as PAs as of January 1, 2005, there were 137 accredited programs for PAs in the United States alone. Ninety-one of these programs award a Master of Sciences in Physician Assistant Studies upon completion. There were fifty-one programs for earning a Bachelor of Sciences, six for Associate Degrees, and over fifty certificate programs. Some programs or schools offer more than one of these options, and several offer dual degree programs. Most of these educational programs are housed in universities, four-year colleges, medical centers, or academic health centers. Others are in hospitals, community colleges, or the military. A great number of accredited programs for physician assistants team up with medical schools for the clinical teaching part of the curriculum. In preparation for a physician assistant college degree program, students should take biology, chemistry, psychology, English, and courses in the social sciences. Experience in healthcare is a plus, but is not necessarily a prerequisite. A PA program's curriculum generally is divided into two categories. First comes the didactic, or academic, part of the program. Classroom instruction typically includes biochemistry, anatomy, pathology, pharmacology, physiology, and microbiology. Further study is comprised of classes in medical ethics, disease prevention, geriatrics, and home healthcare. Secondly, there is the experiential learning part of the curriculum. In this phase of most programs, students receive hands-on clinical training in a variety of areas, such as pediatrics, psychology, emergency care and medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, inpatient care, primary care medicine and surgery. Associate Degree Bachelor Degree Master Degree Whatever their previous major, students must have already completed General and Organic Chemistry, General Biology, and Microbiology. There is often a minimum required GPA, both for general studies as well as for science-related coursework. Many schools also ask for scores from a standardized test such as the GRE. A master's level program takes two to three years, depending on the program and degree of specialization of the student. Dual Degree Programs Colleges and Universities that offer online Physician Assistant degree programs:
A.T. Still University - Online Master's Degree Programs in Physician Assistant Studies Physician Assistant and Medical Assisting CareersWhat does a Physician Assistant do?For students worried about finding a job upon graduation, the numbers tell a reassuring story. According to data from the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA), over 98% of 2004 graduates of a Physician Assistant program were involved in clinical practice by 2005. This field is expanding rapidly. Of the physician assistants currently involved in clinical practice, over fifty percent have obtained a master's degree. Approximately thirty percent, or one-third of this group, hold a bachelor's degree. Doctorates account for another two percent. The state of New York is the number one employer of physician assistants, followed closely by California, Texas, and Pennsylvania. However, Florida and North Carolina are also growing fast. What Can You Do With a Physician Assistant Degree?Over half of all clinically practicing PAs work in the private offices of doctors or other health care practitioners. Most jobs yield competitive salaries, compensation packages, and excellent benefits; many also offer an allowance for continued education. Generally, working conditions are good, as the medical environment is often clean, well lit, and air-conditioned.
Career SpecializationsA great many PAs choose to specialize in specific areas of primary care; some focus on general internal medicine, pediatrics, geriatrics, and family medicine. Other areas of specialization are emergency medicine, orthopedics, and general and thoracic surgery. Those physician assistants choosing to specialize in surgical procedures are responsible for care prior to surgery as well as postoperative care. During surgery, physician assistants may act as first or second assistants to the surgeon in charge of the procedure.Postgraduate residency training programs are available for NCCPA-certified physician assistants who have graduated from an accredited program. These programs offer additional training for those interested in internal medicine, pediatrics, surgery, emergency medicine, neonatology, or rural primary care. Salary Information for Careers in Medical AssistingThe amount a PA can expect to make depends greatly on their years of experience, area of specialization, geographic location, and practice setting. However, according to the AAPA, the average income for fulltime PAs in 2003 was approximately $72,500. For new graduates working fulltime, median income was $63,000. Physician Assistants Making a Difference - Aside from the usual career choices and opportunities afforded by a degree in Physician Assistant Studies, many PAs use their expertise to help make a difference in the world. Instead of working the usual 40-hour office week, certified PAs can look at opportunities such as those offered by The Physician Assistant Foundation. Part of the AAPA, the PA Foundation is a philanthropic group, sponsoring medical missions to places such as Laos, Thailand, and Central America. Career OutlookPhysician assistants can expect to advance as they gain greater experience in the clinical setting. With such advancement comes not only higher earnings, but also greater responsibilities. Clinically practicing PAs, by the nature of their chosen profession, always work under a supervising physician, but can gain greater independence and trust in the job setting. Overall, the outlook for the physician assistant field is very positive. Employment of PAs is on the rise, and is expected to continue to be so for some time. Two factors in the healthcare industry contribute to this growth. One is the expectation that the industry will continue to expand; the other is an increasing worry within the industry about containment of costs. This should lead directly to an increasing use of PAs by private physicians and other healthcare facilities. Physician assistants are efficient and productive members of the healthcare team, and they can relieve physicians of certain tasks and procedures. More and more companies will look to PAs to assist in surgery and other medical procedures as well as to provide primary care. Institutional settings, such as hospitals, public health centers, prisons, and centers for academic medicine, will be hiring more and more PAs, partly to offset the reduced permitted hours for physician residents. Opportunities will be most promising in the states that allow PAs greater autonomy and wider range of practice. Certification and LicensureA new PA is required by law in all fifty states to take and pass the Physician Assistant National Certifying examination, which is given by the National Commission on the Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA). Only graduates of accredited programs may take the examination, and only those receiving a passing score may use the credential "Physician Assistant - Certified." A recertification exam or some other approved program must be completed every six years to maintain certified status. In addition, PAs are required to fulfill up to 100 hours of continuing medical study every two years. These requirements ensure a core capability of medical skills will be maintained by all working PAs. Physician Assistant Associations and Certification Bodies
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