PAs in geriatric medicine will be able to better serve their patients under two bills actively supported by AAPA. These legislative changes are necessary to ensure Medicare beneficiaries' access to needed health care services. At present, PAsand their supervising physicians are forced to go through unnecessary extra steps to ensure that all forms are signed by the physician before such care is provided.
›The Physician Assistants Continuity of Care Act would allow PAs to order home health, hospice, and skilled nursing facility care. This bill also will allow physician assistants to provide hospice care for beneficiaries who elect the hospice benefit.
›The Geriatric Assessment and Chronic Care Coordination Act, which would amend Medicare law to allow physician assistants to perform geriatric assessments and to be designated as chronic care managers with physician supervision, is another bill supported by AAPA. If passed, the legislation would require a study of the effectiveness of the new benefits on Medicare spending, as well as an examination of Medicare chronic care coordination best practices.
›To learn about the Academy's federal legislative efforts, click on the AAPA Legislative Action Center link on the Academy's Web site, www.aapa.org.
Society for PAs Caring for the Elderly (SPACE)
SPACE was created to educate physician assistants about the biopsychosocial aspects of geriatrics, to provide physician assistants already providing geriatric services with a forum for discussing the art of geriatric care and the common goals and concerns of geriatric practice, and to educate physicians and other health care providers on the role of physician assistants in geriatric health care.
›In Spring 2007, Kathy Kemle, MS, PA-C, a founding member of SPACE, began a newly created liaison position bridging the interests of the AAPA and the American Geriatric Society. Ms. Kemle also holds a seat on the Board of Directors for the American Academy of Home Call Physicians.
›SPACE is dedicated to helping physician assistants become informed providers of geriatric care. Geriatric medicine will soon become a necessary element in every physician assistant's practice.
›SPACE works in tandem with AAPA to provide CME sessions at each year's AAPA annual conference. Some of the presentations are available as audio recordings and are eligible for Category I CME credit, such as “Home Care and House Calls: There's No Place Like Home.”
Society of PAs Caring for the Elderly; Steven Johnson, PA-C, President; E-mail: Johnsot5@pamf.org; Web: www.geri-PA.org.
PAs in dermatology made up less than 1% of the physician assistant population in 1996. By 2006, the specialty area had grown to more than 3%. By all accounts, the number of physician assistants in this specialty area will continue to grow. So how does the Academy ensure a strong future for PAs in this and other specialty areas?
›AAPA liaisons with 17 physician organizations, including the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), maintain an open line of communication between physicians and physician assistants. The Academy, working with PA specialty organizations, also regularly exhibits at numerous national physician conferences to educate potential employers about the profession.
›AAPA strives to provide quality CME of interest to physician assistants in a wide variety of specialties. Offerings include the Web-based Grand Rounds Online series, including several courses on dermatology.
›AAPA continues to explore with the Society of Dermatology PAs and AAD additional ways to provide high quality, intensive educational opportunities both for physician assistants working in dermatology and for those who may want to move into that specialty.
Society of Dermatology Physician Assistants (SDPA)
A key issue facing SDPA is dermatologists' increasing demand for more dermatology educational opportunities for physician assistants. SDPA works continuously with the AAD on ways to meet these objectives.
›SDPA-sponsored CME opportunities include the SPDA 5th Annual Fall CME Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, October 31 to November 3. Scheduled speakers include renowned lecturers discussing a variety of clinically relevant topics. In January 2008, SDPA will host its 7th Annual CME Dermatology Symposium in San Antonio, Texas.
›Membership benefits include discounted CME conferences, free journals, an at-home dermatology review book, and an online forum. SDPA also represents the interests of PAs in dermatology at the local and national levels.
›PAs in dermatology fill an important gap in health care created by a current shortage of dermatologists. Recent advances in biological therapies for treating immune-mediated diseases such as psoriasis have enhanced the role of physician assistants in the dermatology care team. Physician assistants are integral in the management of patients being treated with these drugs.
Society of Dermatology Physician Assistants; PO Box 701461, San Antonio, TX 78270-1461; (800) 380-
3992; E-mail: sdpa@dermpa.org; Web: www.dermpa.org.