Being A Physician Assistant Essay

Pebbles Lafleur05/15/2018HS115My Scope of PracticeAs many people know, there are steps into making into the medical field world. There are still certifications and levels to have under your belt to move up. Many people start as a CNA, then LPN, RN and so on and so forth. However, currently, I am enrolled in school to become a CMA (Certified Medical Assistant) and hopefully adding phlebotomy under my belt as well. Nevertheless, before all this to happen, there is a process to go by and complete it accordingly.To be competitive in the medical field marketplace, all medical assistants have to be certified through the AMA. The AAMA (American Association of Medical Assistants) is the association that is responsible for producing the

I have had the opportunity to work with many health professionals, but my experience with PAs has solidified my path to becoming a PA. Devoting over 200 hours to shadow PAs of various specialties had allowed me to learn about pulmonary diseases and read CT scans in pulmonary, watch in awe at an ingrown toenail removal in urgent care, and observe patience and individual care in pediatrics. Although I was at the clinics for observation, I eagerly wanted to assist the PAs and care for the patients. I was fully immersed in the topics that were taught to me and found myself lusting for the knowledge and skills to become a PA.

Being a medical assistant can be a satisfying career choice for those who take pleasure in helping others, have superior communication skills, and are able to multitask. Medical assistants are constantly on the look out to help patients and health professionals. Affection and compassion are personality traits for a career as a medical assistant. Being a medical assistant is a phenomenal career and a rewarding one too.

Physician assistant’s scope of practice is defined by the level of education, experience, state laws, facility policies and the supervising physician’s delegations. PAs work as a team with the supervising physician and they support the physician’s scope of practice. Since the physician assistants are also educated in the medical model, PAs also practice with physicians in every specialty and setting.

The job outlook for a medical assistant is that employment for medical assistants is projected to increase 31% by 2020. The baby-boom, the increase of people getting sick, the major medical problems that people are developing there is going to be more clinics opening, group practices, etc. The result is that more medical assistants are going to be needed (http://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/medical-assistants.htm#tab-6).

Physician assistant job description is stated to be able to practice medicine under the supervision of physicians and surgeons. PA 's are properly educated to offer diagnostic, therapeutic, and preventive health care services, as authorized by a physician. They record medical histories, examine and treat patients, order and interpret laboratory tests and x-rays, and make diagnoses (“Physician assistant job description,” n.d.). However, PAs may be the primary care providers in rural or inner city clinics where a physician is present for only one or two days each week. PAs may also make house calls, round in hospitals, and go to nursing care facilities to check on patients. In such cases, the PA consults with the supervising physician as needed and as required by law.

Expansion of Physician Assistant (PA) programs across the United States occurred rapidly during the 1970s following the introduction of the profession in the 1960s. According to Hooker et al. (2010), the first era of the development of PA programs was followed by a decline in the 1980s. This was due in large part to a belief by the Graduate Medical Education Advisory Committee that there would be a surplus of physicians in the 1990s. Contrarily, there was a still a large discrepancy in the number of accessible providers and providers themselves which continues to this day. Many saw the cost effective advantage of training PAs and seized the opportunity

Becoming a medical assistant is a good choice as a career. This career is continuing to grow a lot. A medical assistant is an enjoyable job, even though it can be difficult at sometimes people still enjoy the job. They mainly stay busy during the day because a lot of patients come in.

The biggest challenge that Physician Assistances face is when a patient questions their competency or their ability to care for them. PA’s are one of the youngest allied health fields and some people are unaware of the role of a physician assistant. The best way to reassure the patient that they are being properly taken care of is to educate the patient on the topic of Physician Assistant. The first Physician Assistant program started in 1960 in the military, to help with the growing need for primary care doctors (Mittman). Physician Assistance must first obtain a four year degree with a competitive GPA of 3.6 or

To become a Physician Assistant it usually requires a master’s degree and at least two full years of a PA program. Getting into the PA program can be exceedingly overwhelming. Plenty of applicants have a bachelor’s degree and health care related work experience. After being in the program for two years, many will go and attain a license, which is required by all states. To be able to get licensed many will need to pass the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE).

To become a physical therapist assistant, I would need to complete school to gain my associate’s

There are more than 100,000 certified Physician Assistants practicing medicine in the United States. PA’s have a very high starting salary and get to do a lot of hands on work. After just two years of schooling you can come out making an average of $94,000. Being stuck at a desk all day is dreadful, and physician assistants get to choose what they want their work environment to look like. Job opportunities for a PA are expected to go up by more than thirty percent between 2010 and 2020. When you are a PA you have a huge amount of flexibility to choose your specialization. I know that a PA is the best career choice for me because i love to work with people and enjoy social interaction, i love to have flexibility to be able to spend time with my family, and there are very good benefits and there will always be job openings.

Physician Assistants are also known as a PA’s; they practice medicine under the direction of physicians and surgeons. They formally trained to examine patients, diagnose injures and illness, and provide treatment. Physician Assistants also evaluate and treat patients under the supervision of doctors and surgeons. A Physician Assistants is a graduate of an accredited Physician Assistant educational program who is nationally certified and state- licensed to practice medicine with the supervision of a physician. Core tasks of a Physician Assistant are they take medical histories and examine patients. They Interpret lab test and make diagnoses, Treat minor injuries with stitches, splints, casts, and prescribes certain medications, The

Somewhere during the last two years of my college courses, I was introduced to physician assistants. The thing that appealed to me the most is how much flexibility there can be within the career. There are a lot of options after graduation to work in a hospital, as a first assist, and in various clinics. Also, as a PA, you have the ability to create a plan of action for your patients, but you also have the potential to work as a team to create efficiency. There are also so many opportunities that other healthcare fields do not have. PAs have options to work in different specialties while MDs have to do additional residency work in order to go into a different field. Living in Mississippi for the past five years, I have also seen the demand for PAs grow. A lot of people did not know what a PA was, some even thinking it was a certificate program, but I have steadily seen more people growing accustomed to them and realizing they are a vital part of health care.

I seek a physician assistant program that will help me to reach my goal of becoming an excellent clinician. In order for me to reach my goal, there are certain criteria specific to my learning style that I deem imperative for a PA program to have. These criteria include a small class size that will promote a positive learning environment, curriculum that is reinforcing, and goals of preparing students to be leaders, educators and clinicians who consider each patient as a whole. Penn State’s PA Program meets these criteria, which lead to my decision to apply.