WHAT IS A PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT
A GUIDE FOR PATIENTS
PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS: DEFINITION AND FUNCTIONS
A physician assistant (PA) is a highly educated health professional who is licensed to practice medicine with the supervision of a licensed physician. The relationship between the physician and the PA allows both to make better use of their time and training. Thus, more patients will get better health care that is centered around their personal needs. It is a team effort; the physician and PA work together to provide more patients with quality medical care.
There are many duties that can be given to the PA by the supervising physician. Some of these duties include:
- Getting a good and correct history about the patient’s medical problem, performing a complete physical examination, identifying problems, and recording important data in a professional way.
- Ordering and reading routine diagnostic information, such as, blood tests, X-rays, EKGs, and Pap smears.
- Diagnosing medical problems and giving treatment that may include prescriptions for medications and hospital instructions for other members of the healthcare team.
- Performing therapeutic procedures, such as, injections, immunizations, appropriate wound care including stitches, cast application and follow up of simple bone breaks.
- Counseling and teaching patients about ways to improve and maintain physical and mental health including: diet, disease prevention and therapy, normal growth and development, family planning, and adjusting to sudden changes in their daily lives.
- Assisting the physician in the hospital by seeing patients; participating in surgery; recording the progress of patients in the medical chart; and planning therapy with the supervising physician.
- Assisting in the delivery of treatment to patients who need continuing care whether in the home, hospital, or nursing home.
PRACTICE SETTINGS
PAs work in a wide variety of settings with the supervision of licensed physicians. Settings include solo private practices, multiple specialized group practices, urban and rural community health centers, urgent care hospitals, uniformed and non-uniformed services, health maintenance organizations, industrial clinics, student health services, federal and state correctional facilities, as well as, chronic care and skilled nursing facilities. For more specific information concerning the physician assistant profession, contact:
South Carolina Academy of Physician Assistants
PO Box 2054
Lexington, SC 29071
(803) 356-6809
Fax: (803) 356-6826
E-mail: association@sc.rr.com
www.scapartners.org\
The American Academy of Physician Assistants
950 North Washington Street
Alexandria, VA 22314-1552
(703) 836-AAPA [2276]
Fax: (703) 684-1924
E-mail: aapa@aapa.org
www.aapa.org
PA EDUCATION
Because of the close working relationship between PAs and Physicians, PAs are held to the same standards of practice and care, and taught to diagnose and treat medical problems using the same medical education model as physicians. PAs are educated in intensive medical programs (accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Physician Assistant Education) averaging 111 weeks as compared to 153 weeks for medical school. The curriculum includes a didactic year consisting of classroom and laboratory instruction in the basic medical and behavioral sciences. This includes such course work as gross anatomy, pharmacology, pathophysiology, ethics, biochemistry, microbiology, clinical medicine, and physical diagnosis. The second year consists of clinical rotations including, medicine, surgery, mental health, orthopedics, pediatrics, ob/gyn, family medicine, emergency medicine and geriatrics. Students are assigned to clinical rotations in private practices, clinics, and hospitals.
For more information on educational opportunities in South Carolina, contact:
Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC)
College of Health Professions
Physician Assistant Program
165 Cannon Street, Suite 403
PO Box 250856
Charleston, SC 29425
(843) 792-3789
www.musc.edu/chp/pa
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Are PAs licensed to practice in South Carolina?
Yes. PAs are licensed and credentialed by South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners to practice medicine with the supervision of a physician.
What role does a PA have?
The role of the PA in practice is to increase availability of medical care while working within the physician’s area of practice. The physician and PA work as a team to develop practice plans for the best health care services for their patients.
Can PAs write prescriptions?
Yes. With the consent of the physician, the state allows PAs to write medical orders and prescriptions. In the hospital, a PA may do the admission history, physical, and may order medications, lab work, and other necessary diagnostic tests.
In the doctor’s office, the PA may prescribe medications, including some controlled substances. The prescription must include the name of the PA and that of the supervising physician, the practice address and phone number, and the PA’s signature followed by the title PA-C and the PA’s South Carolina license number.
What does the title PA-C mean?
This abbreviation is the legal title of physician assistants who are licensed to practice in South Carolina. PA-C stands for licensed physician assistant-certified. This title may be used only by PAs who have successfully completed the national certifying examination and possess a valid certificate of certification. PAs take a recertification exam every six years.