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Originally Posted by Kyobanim
Just a little turn in the topic...
I've noticed more recently that there are more PAs than I realized. Maybe they've always been there and I just didn't notice. Is this something that has gained popularity as a medical career path recently or am I just blind?
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The PA profession has initiated a boom in PA schools nationwide. 10 years ago it was touted as the number 1 growing profession in the United States with less than 20 acredited programs. Now there are over 100 programs nationwide pumping out PA's faster than most other collegiate programs.
With the current health care system, each physician can have as many as 6 PA's working under him. We (generally) are able to do about 80% of what physicians do. So if you were a hospital administrator, would you rather hire 7 docs at $200K a year each or 1 doc at $200K and 6 PA's at $80K-$100K. Much depends on the state and the area of practice of course, but this is the general formula. PA's also are obligated to charge LESS for the same re-imbursable service, so insurance companies are more willing to pay the employment group for our services rendered.
Something IMPORTANT to look for with PA's though...is the "C" at the end. i.e. Billybob Tentpeg "PA-C". This "C" means that they have passed a national certification exam and denotes "Certified". It is not a requirement (outside of the military) that folks pass or even take this exam. It is expensive, long, and difficult, but adds a great deal of credibility to the PA in practice and employment.
Eagle