ADVANCE Blog for PAs : Degrees

Wake Forest University’s MMS-PhD Program Approved

Terri Schaefer — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:43:00 GMT

Ralph W. Rice, MPAS, PA-C, associate professor and associate director of the Wake Forest University PA program in Winston-Salem, N.C., recently told ADVANCE that the university's board of trustees has approved its proposed MMS-PhD program. The program,...(read more)

More Discussion on PAs and the Physician Shortage

Heather Simons — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:43:00 GMT

And so the health care reform debate continues... A recent article at Examiner.com champions PAs and NPs as a possible solution to the physician shortage. "Primary physician shortage spurs search for alternatives," by DC public policy examiner Alan Portner,...(read more)

PA-to-Physician Bridge Concept Gets Attention

Stephen Cornell — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 17:26:00 GMT

The fourth recommendation from the PA Clinical Doctorate Summit was particularly interesting. 4. The PA profession should explore with physician education groups the development of a model for advanced standing for PAs who desire to become physicians...(read more)

Physician Assistant Clinical Doctorate Summit News

Stephen Cornell — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 15:35:00 GMT

The American Academy of Physician Assistants and the Physician Assistant Education Association have posted a statement on last week’s PA Clinical Doctorate Summit. Forty-five people participated in the summit meeting. Here’s a set of recommendations from...(read more)

Physician Assistant Clinical Doctorate Degree Summit Participants

Stephen Cornell — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 17:44:00 GMT

The three-day physician assistant clinical doctorate degree summit began today in Atlanta. PAEA posted a list of the summit's 46 participants on its Web site. Link...(read more)

Physician Assistant Doctorate Summit

Stephen Cornell — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 18:49:00 GMT

The long-awaited PAEA-AAPA physician assistant doctorate degree summit meeting finally begins March 25 in Atlanta. One interesting note, PAEA's online message board about doctorate degrees has a lot of talk about a PA-to-physician bridge program. It'll...(read more)

Physician Assistant Doctorate Survey

Stephen Cornell — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 14:28:00 GMT

The American Academy of Physician Assistants and Physician Assistant Education Association are conducting an online survey about clinical doctorate degrees and the PA profession. The survey also asks about PA-to-physician bridge programs.

Is the clinical doctorate appropriate to the PA profession as an entry-level degree, as a postgraduate degree, or not at all? How should the PA profession approach the emerging issue of the clinical doctorate?
To help answer these questions and others AAPA and PAEA have partnered to explore the role of the clinical doctorate in the PA profession. As part of that exploration we have created a survey to assess the opinions of physician assistants on the issue.

I think it's an important step forward for the AAPA and PAEA to ask PAs about their views.

Access the survey at the AAPA Web site.

Link

Will Nurses Use 'Doctor'?

Stephen Cornell — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 21:37:00 GMT

Interesting poll results from the ADVANCE for Nurse Practitioners Web site.

If you had a doctoral degree, would you use the title "doctor"?
- Yes, I earned it. (22%)
- Yes, but not with patients. (17%)
- No. (60%)

Link

Physician Assistant Doctorate Degree Debate

Stephen Cornell — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 21:03:00 GMT

There's a very active debate about physician assistant doctorate degrees going on at the Physician Assistant Education Association Web site.

I like this comment from one PA educator.

There is no clear answer. We MUST acknowledge the degree creep in our health profession peers and our competition in the workplace (NPs). We must acknowledge that there is no clear upside or downside to the PA doctorate. We must look forward and not back (of course not ignoring lessons of hx). The profession must clearly understand that they do not control the educational institutions who tend to respond to the marketplace, perceptions of need (or what) and other factors. Rather than attempting to dictate the direction; it may wise to provide synthesis of the literature, new research and guidance for decision making.
Best wishes to my colleagues who will be leading the process and outcomes.

Go over there to read the rest, including comments by Seymour Butts, PA-C. Isn't the Web great?

Link

NPR on 'Doctor Nurses'

Stephen Cornell — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 18:01:00 GMT

National Public Radio did a piece on the Doctor of Nursing Practice degree on All Things Considered on Feb. 22.

No one wants to badmouth Florence Nightingale, but a new degree for nurses is causing bad blood between doctors and their longtime colleagues. The program confers the title of doctor on nurses, but some in the medical profession say only physicians should call themselves "doctor."
Dr. Steven Knope is a family practitioner in Tucson, Ariz. "If you're on an airline," he jokes, "and a poet with a Ph.D. is there and somebody has a heart attack, and they say 'Is there a doctor in the house?' — should the poet stand up?" Knope laughs. "Of course not."

Is a "poet with a PhD" really equivalent to a nurse practitioner with a doctorate degree? Of course not. That's silly.

The report also briefly mentions PAs--as a threat to physicians. Not the best mention.

Here's where physicians and the new doctor nurses agree: Both groups say physicians feel threatened. They see the new breed of nurses as an invasion of their turf.
Fourth-year medical student Janet Pullockaran at University Hospital's emergency room understands the threat. "With all these new people — physician assistants, nurse practitioners coming into the field — maybe our training won't lead to a secure position in the future," she says.

It makes me wonder if the whole doctorate debate--for NPs and PAs--isn't in large part just another turf battle in a long, long line of physician turf battles.

Link

Have Nurse Practitioners "Gone Off the Deep End"?

Stephen Cornell — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 20:39:00 GMT

Physician assistant blogger physasst questions the nurse practitioner profession's move to the DNP degree.

OKEY DOKEY. I like NP's, I consider them colleagues, but I think that they have gone off the deep end with this one. First, mandating that all NP education is awarded a doctorate by 2015 is foolish. This will decrease enrollment of many potential RN's, and especially those that might be likely to practice in rural and underserved areas, where we have the greatest need. The added expenses of completing a doctoral degree will ensure that DNP graduates will seek out better paying opportunities in more attractive locales in order to pay down student loan debt.
My other concern is the use of the title, "Doctor". It is true that pharmacists, PT's, and others have moved to a doctoral degree. BUT, none of those professions outside of a psychologist, use the title "Doctor" when treating patients.....why you might ask?

Link

Physician Assistant Clinical Doctorate Update

Stephen Cornell — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 18:50:00 GMT

The American Academy of Physician Assistants posted on its Web site an update about its investigation of a possible physician assistant clinical doctorate degree.

Is the clinical doctorate appropriate to the profession as an entry-level degree, as a postgraduate degree, or not at all?
How should the PA profession approach the emerging issue of the clinical doctorate? Many health professions, including physical therapy, nursing, audiology, and pharmacy, have implemented or are making plans to implement the clinical doctorate as a part of their profession. These professions have cited leadership skills, higher pay, and patient acceptance as reasons why a doctorate education is needed. The PA community has for the most part been officially silent on this issue but recognizes that this position will not serve the profession well in the long run.

The AAPA and PAEA will invite 40 to 50 people from within the profession and outside the profession to a three-day summit meeting in Atlanta from March 25-27.

Link

Some Support for a Physician Assistant-to-Physician Bridge Program

Stephen Cornell — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 22:14:00 GMT

There's some support for a physician assistant-to-physician bridge program on the Physician Assistant Educaiton Association's Web site.

The ongoing discussion is in the comments section below PAEA's resources about PA doctorate degrees.

From PA educator Ken Harbert:

One of the first PAs in the country Vic Germino recently stated he hoped the future PAs would find passion in their lives for primary care and return to the roots of our history, if we really want to be change agents why not challenge medical schools to establish and offer a Primary Care Bridge Program as a MD/DO/Phd in Primary Care - that would offer more for us all.

Link

An NP on the DNP

Stephen Cornell — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 00:02:00 GMT

From our sister publication, ADVANCE for Nurse Practitioners, New York nurse practitioner Anthony Pucek's take on the Doctorate of Nursing Practice.

The DNP
Will it Create a Second-Class NP?
It looks like the doctorate of nursing practice (DNP) will be part of our professional futures. By 2015, all new advanced practice nurses will need to have a DNP for certification. Those of us in practice before that date will not be required to get the degree; we will be grandfathered in.
Will the DNP make master's-prepared NPs appear unqualified to provide the services they have been competently providing for years? As NPs, we need to know how this will affect our lives. The push for the DNP has far-reaching consequences.
Expert Status
A master's degree has long been considered the terminal degree for nursing specialists to enter advanced practice. With master's degrees, NPs are highly educated specialists. We seek new and updated knowledge to serve our patients' best interests. We consult or refer to gain the input of others when faced with a particularly difficult case.
Our current system of certification and recertification demonstrates our commitment to stay current with knowledge. We attend conferences, seminars and other continuing education activities that have been accepted as credits toward recertification.
Most master's-prepared NPs have pursued patient-centered careers. Ongoing continuing education, as well as collegial discussions, are manifestations of our efforts to be the best we can be. I fear that the DNP will invalidate master's-level providers as experts and that only those with a DNP will be viewed as experts.
Financial Concerns
Several studies have proven that master's-prepared nurse practitioners provide safe and effective care equal to that of their physician counterparts. We sweat the details and immerse ourselves in the real world of health care, with its long hours and agonizing decisions. Will a DNP improve our income? Or will it send a message to insurance companies that master's-prepared NPs are no longer qualified? Will it reduce the opportunity to gain provider status on insurance panels?
Job Opportunities
As we gain experience, we get better at what we do as professionals. We also begin to think of our future - our retirement. Many of us will not have the resources to support a full-time retirement. Some of us just won't want to stop practicing completely. What we think about is a less stressed working life as we continue serving our communities. We think about relocating to a warmer or less busy environment.
Will I be qualified to get a job in another state? Will my qualifications be considered insufficient? Will I become an anachronism? As the DNP becomes the norm, will older, master's-level NPs be able to compete for jobs?
Independent Practice
The rush to implement this credential will seriously affect NPs' efforts to achieve independent practice. Advocates of the DNP speculate that the degree will lead to reforming statutory supervision and collaborative practice laws. But I predict that it will lead legislators and medical associations to clamp down on the independence of master's-prepared NPs.
The DNP push is ill timed, ill planned and controlled by forces that don't represent mainstream NPs. I urge my colleagues to search their souls and their wallets. Is this direction acceptable? Is it wise?
It's the bottom of the ninth for current NPs, and we are losing a game that we were never invited to. The sad part is that it's not a game. It is about authority, privilege and money. This is about our livelihood, and it is truly serious business.

Link

Movement on Physician Assistant Doctorate Issue

Stephen Cornell — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:27:00 GMT

The PAEA-AAPA summit to consider an entry-level doctorate degree for the profession is scheduled for March 25-27.

The organizations have created a sponsor group "to oversee the planning, research, and educational process that will support the final recommendation."

There seems to be a lot of bureaucracy going on, but I guess that's not always a bad thing. At least they are beginning to address the issue.

The sponsor group members are:

Matt Dane Baker, PA-C, DHSc
Dawn Morton-Rias, EdD, PA-C
Donna Sewell, MS, PA-C
Patricia Guerra, PA-C, MPAS
Timi Agar Barwick
Ayeshia Ellington Pompey
Bob McNellis, MPH, PA
Cheryl Homes

Link