How to get into PA school

Please click on the link below to have access to my e-book which was created with step by step instructions about the process on how to get into PA school. There are six pages of information....

Dozens have purchased the ebook and have thanked me for their help... Let me know how you are doing and keep me informed. Ebook is only $3.


https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/749218

Lessons Learned

Yes I am still in PA school. I will graduate this summer and I can't wait to finish. The second year has been focused on clinical skills learned by direct "hands on" type learning. Each student has a primary physician (preceptor) who works with us and is given the task to facilitate the teaching of how to be a medical provider. These physicians have agreed to teach and are not compensated. The typical routine is for the student to shadow for a bit and get to know the office and the procedures, followed by seeing patients by yourself. After seeing a patient you discuss the visit with the doctor and make your suggestions of an assessment and a plan. The doctor will then return and see the patient and let you know if there are things to do differently and remind you of what is most important. In some ways it is a win-win situation. The doctor is able to receive free work by letting you see patients and moving the patient flow at an increased rate and the student is learning how to be a provider beyond what the books tell you.

The second year has been focused on this type of learning in a primary care location and also we are spending time in surgery, geriatric medicine, pediatrics, ob-gyn, psychiatry, in-patient, and in the ER.

We continue to study our notes and read the textbooks as we are continually tested on pathology, decision making, assessments, and physiology.

The learning has been rigorous and stressful. I feel myself constantly in uncomfortable situations where I don’t quite belong or rather in someone else’s territory. Patients look at me with dubiousness, wondering if I can help them. This anxious and stressful learning is over-the-top at times but it is part of the process. After going through the process again and again it is nice when you recognize the progress. It is amazing to think that only a few short months separate the initial task I set out on so many years ago and successful completion. There are many jobs available and offers have already been extended.

If you are reading and want to know how to get into pa school…. Check out the ebook that I wrote on the process 

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/749218

Physician Assistant School - Clinical Exam

The patient exam
(Oral Practicum)


The misdiagnosis - learning to lead with your heart

There is so much to learn in PA school in a short amount of time. It has been referred to as medical school packed into 2 years - an analogy of drinking out of a fire hose.

Beyond testing the learning of each organ system and the associated disease processes and presentations, we are occasionally tested based on an actual patient encounter. An opportunity for our teachers to improve our bedside manner, communication with patients, and review our diagnosis and thought processes. Our program has a faux medical clinic which appears everything like a real office. From the waiting room to the patient rooms it appears like a typical new medical clinic. Our patient experiences are filmed, reviewed, critiqued, and ultimately made available for us to watch. The patients are paid actors who are given instructions to follow. Charts are on the front door and we aren't aware of the chief complaint until we get to the door. After the encounter we have a professor (doctor) available to whom we present the case as typically done in the medical field.

Yesterday I completed my second patient encounter exam. I made one key error in the diagnosis of the patient and realized the mistake immediately. I was so frustrated with the partial misdiagnosis... I know better. However if these tests are really supposed to be learning experiences I think that it was a success as I learned. There are a few mistakes that I would never do again based on this patient encounter.

This type of test is a difficult test to prepare for. The limitless possibilities of potential chief complaints and associated pathologies eliminates the idea of cramming to prepare. Consistant study and knowledge prepares you. The key advice I would give is to think clearly. Avoid regret by thinking clearly about what you are doing. You know what to do, trust you knowledge, trust your feelings and make the appropriate decisions. Look at the patient, use appropriate learned techniques for a physical exam, and don't be fooled by obvious possibilities but rather be confident and clearly think about what is wrong and what you are doing. You are always allowed to step out of the room while seeing a patient. As you step out of the room I recommend stopping and thinking about the complaint, the situation and quickly making sure you are thinking everything through. A good time to step out of the room is when you ask the patient to change into a robe and sit up on the exam chair.

I could go on for a long time but again my advice is this: USE YOUR HEAD BUT LEAD WITH YOUR HEART!! I believe as you do this you will have clarity and wise decision making.

Landing the perfect job as a physician assistant (PA)

I have recently been working on a class project that asked me to research the national and state perspectives of the role of physician assistants in locations such as: skilled nursing facilities, psychiatric facilities, home health care, outpatient care, and education. I began by doing some research and I have become facinated with the diverse roles that are needed and can be chosen as a physician assistant.

There are so many choices and fields of medicine that physcian assistants can choose to pursue. I have decided to continue my research on the different areas of profession and find out the barriers of entry and needs that exist. I am also trying to research the best approach to land a great job with limited experience and knowledge. What steps should you take as you are in school, after school; who do I talk to?; what experience opportunities are availabe?; what are job employers looking for? etc....

I have come across a great site that is designed for mid level clinicians such as physician assistants to find jobs. It is called pagigs.com. I thought it was a great site and shows that there are many possiblities of employment after graduation. I decided to put a link to the site on my blog. Check it out.

Start a health clinic as a Physician Assistant

It is possible as a Physician Assistant to run and own a medical clinic. The possibilities seem very exciting and as one can imagine the limitless possibilities are intriguing. I am not an expert in this area and I don't have much time currently to investigate and learn and so I decided to bring this up as a post. Please feel free to leave comments on your experiences or knowledge....

This topic has my attention as I have been approached 3 times by 3 physicians to discuss the possibility in creating a partnership in starting a clinic after graduation. Our class has also received 2 lectures from PA's who work in a partnership with a Physician and they are business owners in their medical clinic. One of the presenters spent much time on describing how he decided to start his own clinic and the benefits and successes that he has had. Obviously if the clinic is succesful the income potential is very large. There are also the obvious stresses and risks associated with starting a businesses...

I believe the laws are different in every state and should be researched. If a PA is interested he must have a supervising physician as a partner in the business. The physician is required but the partnership doesn't have to be 50/50. There are PAs who give a very small percentage to the physician as the physician is "supervising" but not really associated with the business.

Anyway it is an intersting subject. I will spend time before I graduate learning and researching. I am not sure if I will take on such an endeavor but if I continue to be approached I would at least like to know the possbility and understand if the arrangement is fair and promising.

Studying for physician assistant test

To answer a comment on a previous post I wrote the following about how I study for tests:

Well everyone has their own method of studying.... I approach it like a puzzle; I start with the edge pieces and complete the outer border. I follow this by working on an area and moving on one area at a time until I have worked in each area. Finally I spend time and concentration on the last few pieces.

So to interpret this, the outside border = beginning by looking over what I need to know and writing it down (I use a small white board in my office). I then read with a pad of paper and take notes on the areas I think are important. I then use supplemental information such as study guides, my notes and other texts to better understand key areas and convert this to note cards. Before the test I study with my note cards and go over and over them making sure I know the areas I chose to focus on. Several times it has occurred that there have been questions on the test that I never studied. I realize that I cannot cover everything and I sometimes miss a few areas as I omitted them while deciding what to study in the beginning steps. This happens but sticking to a plan and following it I have found allows me to study with less stress and helps me feel prepared come test time.

I know some students use charts and graphs. Some students like to review and study with applications and online tools. Some read every chapter in the book. There are many approaches that fit the many different personalities.