Army Times: No One Earns as Much Respect as PAs
"On the battlefield, no one earns as much respect as the physician assistants assigned to line units to ensure everybody comes home," according to an Army Times article about the Army's shortage of qualified PAs.
The Army needs about 150 more PAs, according to the article.
But even as their reputation grows beyond pre-war “sick-call doctor” status to training medics to care for gunshot wounds, shrapnel injuries and explosion burns — as well as commanding aid stations when mass casualties come in — the Army is still short 150 physician assistants.
“The real issue is retaining them,” Jones said. “Right out of school, civilians are making $85,000 to $120,000 a year for a 32-hour work week, and they do not have to leave their families.”
The article also mentiones the Army's development of the first clinical doctorate degree for PAs.
In December, the military graduated their first four officers with a doctorate in clinical science — the only such program in the U.S. Those doctors, training at Brook Army Medical Center in Texas, will have extra expertise in emergency room skills, Jones said, adding that officials hope to expand that 18-month program to three more Army medical facilities.
This could help the military in another way: Across the country, medical schools are short of instructors for PA programs. The troops who graduate from the new doctorate program will be able to teach at the PA program at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.
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