PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS

January 2013

What is a PA?A physician assistant (PA) is nationally certified and state licensed to practice medicine as part of a physician-led team. PAs are educated at the graduate level and practice in nearly every medical specialty and setting.

What do PAs do?• Conduct physical exams• Diagnose and treat illnesses• Order and interpret tests• Counsel on preventive healthcare• Assist in surgery• Write prescriptions• Make rounds in nursing homes and hospitals• Obtain medical histories

* PAs’ responsibilities correspond to their supervising physicians’ practice.

WHAT IS A PA?

83,600Employment in 2010

108,300Projected employment in 2020

Projected Growth of PAs in Clinical Practice

With a projected growth of 39 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts physician assistants will be the second-fastest-growing health profession in the next decade (after home health aides).

50Number of states authorizing

PA prescribing privileges

90,000Number of certified PAs at the end of 2012, according to the National Commission on

Certification of Physician Assistants

1967Year the first three PAs graduated

from Duke University

$90,873Median annual income from primary employer for

full-time clinically practicing PAs* in 2010.

*Excludes self-employed and part-time PAsSource: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition, Physician Assistants, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/physician-assistants.htm (visited Dec.20, 2012).

VITAL STATISTICS

PA profession ranks high in today’s economy• Forbes.com ranked physician assistant in its list of best master’s degrees for jobs

three years in a row.

• CNNMoney.com ranked PA as number two on its Best Jobs in America list in 2009 and 2010. The profession continues to rank high.

• U.S. News & World Report ranked the PA profession as one of the 50 best careers of 2011.

• Kiplinger’s named PAs one of the “great careers for your future.”

• “HHS continues to invest in the PA workforce through various programs, many spearheaded by the Health Resources and Services Administration. The Affordable Care Act builds on these efforts through … payment increases to primary care PAs.” – HHS Secretary Kathleeen Sebelius, Oct. 5, 2012

• First-year PAs earn a median salary of $77,000 annually*.

TODAY’S ECONOMY

*Source: 2010 AAPA Census

*Excludes self-employed PAs and PAs working less than 32 hours per week for their primary employer

PA INCOMES

DISTRIBUTION OF CLINICALLY PRACTICING PAs BY PRIMARY SPECIALTY

Source: 2010 AAPA Census.

DERMATOLOGY 3.5%

GENERAL SURGERY 2.7%

HOSPITAL MEDICINE 2.4%

GENERAL PEDIATRICS 2.1%

OBSTETRICS/GYNECOLOGY 2.0%

PEDIATRIC SUBSPECIALTIES 1.6%

FAMILY MEDICINE 24.8%

SURGICAL SUBSPECIALTIES 23.2%

OTHER 11.7%

EMERGENCY MEDICINE 10.9%

INTERNAL MEDICINE SUBSPECIALTIES 10.3%

GENERAL INTERNAL MEDICINE 4.8%

PA PRACTICE SPECIALTIES

Source: 2010 AAPA Census.

PA WORK ENVIRONMENTS

CERTIFIED RURAL CLINIC FACILITY 2.7%

OTHER FREESTANDING OUTPATIENT HEALTH FACILITY 2.2%

FEDERALLY QUALIFIED HEALTH CENTER 2.1%

HMO FACILITY 0.9%

NURSING HOME OR LONG-TERM CARE 0.9%

UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE STUDENT HEALTH FACILITY 0.5%

DISTRIBUTION OF CLINICALLY PRACTICING PAs BY PRIMARY WORK SETTING

HOSPITAL 39.4%

SINGLE-SPECIALTY PHYSICIAN GROUP 19.7%

SOLO-PHYSICIAN PRACTICE 11.0%

MULTISPECIALTY PHYSICIAN GROUP 9.5%

OTHER 7.8%

COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER 3.1%

U.S. FEDERALLY EMPLOYED PAs IN 2010

Source: 2010 AAPA Census.

AIR FORCE 5.1%

ARMY 14.4%

NAVY 4.3%

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS 23.4%

US PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE 4.3%

OTHER FEDERAL GOVERNMENT 6.8%

STATE GOVERNMENT 22.2%

LOCAL GOVERNMENT 10.5%

OTHER GOVERNMENT (EG., FOREIGN) 3.3%

INDIAN HEALTH SERVICE 5.8%

PAs NOT EMPLOYED BY GOVERNMENT 90.6%PAs EMPLOYED BY GOVERNMENT 9.4%

DISTRIBUTION OF CLINICALLY PRACTICING PAs EMPLOYED BY

GOVERNMENT

• There are 173 accredited PA educational programs in the United States.

• Most PA programs award a master’s degree.• PAs are required to complete:

−More than 400 hours in basic sciences−75 hours in pharmacology−175 hours in behavioral sciences−Nearly 580 hours of clinical medicine−The average length of a PA program is 27

months long.

HOW TO BECOME A PA

• PAs are required to pass a national certifying examination administered by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants.

• PAs must earn and log 100 hours of continuing medical education every two years.

• PAs must take a recertification examination every six years (every 10 years starting in 2014).

• To be able to practice, PAs must have a state license and work with a physician.

• The current six-year time period between recertification exams will be extended to 10 years to better reflect PA competence in practice.

HOW TO BECOME A PA

WANT TO LEARN MORE?

American Academy of Physician Assistants

2318 Mill Road Suite 1300Alexandria, VA 22314

P 703-836-2272F 703-684-1924

www.aapa.orgwww.pasconnect.org