PAs in Canada
Interesting article about the PA profession in Canada from the National Review of Medicine.
Physician assistants (PAs) in Ontario will soon see their role expanded into diabetes and longterm care settings. But the move has MDs in the province wondering where these as-yet unregulated professionals fit in the chain of command.
Last year, Ontario became only the second province after Manitoba to embrace PAs, a profession that got its start in the military. Ontario's PAs were originally limited to working in emergency departments, in the hopes of reducing notoriously long wait times and reducing doctors' workloads. The project has been deemed a success, prompting the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) to recommend the government expand PAs' roles. They should be set up in their new duties by next April.
But as with most of these new professional roles - which in Ontario include anesthesia assistants and nurse practitioners - figuring out scope of practice and responsibilities is a challenge.
Link