PA Professional Issues

Are making people better and making money mutually exclusive?

May 21, 2012

The author has more questions than answers as he contemplates what it means to be a PA in a society—and within a health care system—as materialistic as ours.
 

Trauma patient satisfaction with physician ­assistants: Testing a structural equation model

, Robin E. Crowe, MA; Sue Nyberg, MHS, PA-C; Charles Burdsal, PhD May 08, 2012

Understanding how patient satisfaction is linked to perceptions of quality medical care is vital to PA success and will support the PA's role on the health care team.
 

CAQs: To do or not to do?

May 07, 2012

Certificates of Added Qualification are not essential for PAs and should not be forced. But the author will get one anyway.
 

Leadership case study: Cynthia Booth Lord, 
MHS, PA-C

May 04, 2012

This new JAAPA department explores leadership as embodied by individual PAs. The first to be profiled epitomizes the concept of the servant leader.
 

The concept of the "Citizen PA"

May 01, 2012

Some PAs may feel a focus on health disparities is extracurricular. Identifying ourselves as citizen PAs allows us to realize our capacities, both large and small, to effect change.
 

What could PAs become if they answer the call to leadership?

May 01, 2012

The author explores leadership as epitomized by individual PAs, arguing that their stories will help others to realize their aptitudes for leadership, demystify the path to making lasting change, and invigorate PAs to lead the profession forward.
 

Should PAs assess and address the impact of implicit bias on patient care?

April 24, 2012

Implicit bias is so subtle that colleagues may not recognize it in themselves. Among the signs to watch for are loss of patient autonomy and lack of fairness in treatment.
 

The certified physician assistant in the 
United States: A 2011 snapshot

, Janet Lathrop, MBA; Scott Arbet, PhD April 20, 2012

This analysis characterizes the most up-to-date demographic data and practice profile for certified physician assistants in the United States.
 

Generations of certified physician assistants

, Janet Lathrop, MBA; Scott Arbet, PhD April 19, 2012

Generational differences among PAs—which have been further amplified by dramatic shifts in gender ratios—have implications for the physician-PA team.
 

A review of two recent articles about medication shortages

April 17, 2012

In cardiothoracic surgery and other specialties, medication shortages are growing and media coverage of the issue is expanding with it.
 

Inside the AAPA Policy Manual—April 2012

April 11, 2012

As the annual AAPA conference approaches, new policy questions arise: What proposals will be considered? What will be new at the House meeting?
 

Why PAs should be connecting with colleagues on LinkedIn

April 03, 2012

Organizing your professional contacts in one place is a given for PAs who want to advance their careers. So why aren't you on LinkedIn?
 

From "old boys" to "all girls": Changing PA demographics

April 03, 2012

Women PAs must recognize and act on their aptitude for leadership to help ensure the continued growth of the PA profession.
 

PAs and the Affordable Care Act: Implications unknown

April 02, 2012

The ACA's effect on PAs is still unclear. What is clear is that PA's ability to adapt with a changing health care environment will be increasingly important in this tumultuous time.
 

Not much has changed, has it?

Ben Olmedo, PA-C March 30, 2012

In 1989, PA journals wrote about the need to involve more minorities in the PA profession. In 2012, the headlines still read the same.
 

How medication shortages affect day-to-day clinician decisions

March 27, 2012

Drug shortages have affected clinicians in all specialties, not just cardiothoracic surgery. The author examines how the crisis has impacted the everyday decisions of PAs.
 

The question I wish people would ask about cardiothoracic surgery

March 15, 2012

When PAs or PA students are thinking about getting into cardiothoracic surgery, there is one important and telling question that rarely gets asked.
 

Addressing PA students in a professional way

March 15, 2012

The lack of a standard way for patients to address PA students potentially undermines the professionalism of PA students and physician assistants.
 

Factors that influence physician assistant 
choice of practice location

, Richard D. Muma, PhD, MPH, PA-C; Lindsay Burks, MPA, PA-C; Molly Muck Lavoie, MPA, PA-C March 14, 2012

The authors surveyed factors considered influential in the selection of a PA's first practice location, and their results may be illuminating not just to those interested in PA workforce issues but also to recruiters with hard-to-fill positions.
 

APACVS notes

March 09, 2012

The Association of Physician Assistants in Cardiovascular Surgery is preparing for the Summer Critical Care Conference; here's why you should attend.
 

Health care: 
The quality 
chasm 10 years later

QCWG, the Quality Care Work Group at the AAPA March 09, 2012

We have made progress in some of the six areas identified for improvement by the Institute of Medicine in 2001, but we have fallen short in others.
 

Are you looking for an intervention that can cut your patient's mortality by 50%?

March 08, 2012

The author blogs about a particularly affecting lecture and reiterates why you should never miss a chance to offer support for smoking cessation.
 

When is a PA not a PA?

March 01, 2012

The author, who works as a PA in IT services, relates the deeper questions raised by a colleague's comment one day: "Oh that's interesting, when did you stop being a PA?"
 

Somebody ought to do something, right?

February 27, 2012

Maybe that someone is you. The author points out that if most of PAs belonged to their professional organizations and communicated with their legislators about laws impacting PAs, we would likely have little trouble improving our legislative success.
 

We've come a long way, baby!

February 23, 2012

PA: a postmodern acronym devised to denote a select group of highly-trained, top-notch health care professionals groomed to provide state-of-the-art compassionate care in collaboration with practicing physicians, upholding the vision to restore the practice of medicine to its prior place of unselfish service to humankind.
 

Hasta la vista, baby

February 20, 2012

Mistakes are a very human trait. We are unlikely to eradicate them entirely from medicine, but with self-monitoring and teamwork, we can reduce the risk.
 

Why understanding meaningful use is vital to the future of the PA profession

February 17, 2012

Gaining an understanding of EHR, starting with learning what meaningful use means, is vital to the the future of the PA profession.
 

Perceptions of physician assistants regarding direct-to-consumer advertising

, Asha Mathews, MPAS, PA-C; Michael Suprenant, MPAS, PA-C; Lawrence Herman, MPA, RPA-C, DFAAPA February 15, 2012

In this survey, the majority of PAs had neutral or unfavorable opinions of direct-to-consumer advertising, which they viewed as having a negative effect on the patient-provider relationship.
 

Perceptions of physician assistants regarding a specialty certification examination

, Richard D. Muma, PhD, MPH, PA-C; Cassandra L. Montoya, MPA, PA-C; Amanda K. Pettijohn, MPA, PA-C February 14, 2012

This national survey found that PAs do not appear to support the specialty certification process, even though the trend is toward specialty care in other professions.
 

Precepting PA students: How 
you can touch the future

February 03, 2012

PAs can build a stronger profession by mentoring their future colleagues, says the author. Give back by volunteering to precept.
 

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