Within the healthcare sector, all jobs have value but those that have been recognized as being beneficial for the employee as well as the employer is physician assistant jobs. Today’s doctors are overwhelmed with work. The number of people seeing a doctor has increased due to better insurance policies, more government programs, and overall, more people to include the baby boomer generation. Without assistance, doctors could not keep up with workload.
There are many benefits associated with physician assistant jobs but because this type of job is available for doctors of all types, it has captured the attention of individuals looking for job security and good pay, especially in healthcare. Although the work can sometimes be challenging, it is also very rewarding and interesting.
Responsibilities of a Physician Assistant
To begin, we provided information about standard responsibilities performed by a physician assistant. Now, job functions could vary depending on the actual doctor, type of doctor, degree of workload, geographic location, and even the skills, education, training, and experience provided by the assistance. Even with variations, the following duties would be common for a qualified physician assistant, also referred to as a PA.
- Provide assistant to the attending physician and in some instances, a registered nurse also working for the physician
- Have involvement in making a proper patient diagnosis
- Gather information about a patient and family’s medical history
- Preparing a split or cast for sprains and fractures
- Suturing some open wounds
- Performing a patient examination
- Assist in minor surgery procedures
Advanced Job Duties
In addition to the more basic functions performed with physician assistant jobs, a person following this type of career could complete necessary education and training for specialized care. A prime example would be providing assistance to the doctor for more complex procedures, often seen in the physician assistant with emergency care. Other popular advanced areas for physician assistant jobs include pediatrics and geriatrics.
It is also common for people working physician assistant jobs in country or remote regions to perform many of the same duties as the doctor. In fact, there are clinics throughout the country that only staff a PA. Of course, in life-or-death situations or scenarios outside the scope of the physician assistant’s expertise, a referral to a doctor or hospital would be required. This person would also make all arrangements for getting a patient to the proper facility in regards to life-saving efforts.
Requirements for Education and Training
To work any physician assistant jobs, a bachelor’s degree in some area of science would be mandatory although a Master’s Degree of Science in a physician assisting program is preferred. To complete a master’s degree for this type of job, coursework for the first year would cover things such as human physiology, anatomy, organic chemistry, biochemistry, and microbiology.
As a part of completing the master’s degree, coursework in the final year would include emergency room medicine, general surgery, internal medicine, primary care, and a variety of other medical services. Additionally, to work as a physician assistant, the individual would need to work elective rotations in each of these areas, the same as a doctor completing an internship would do. With all education done, a comprehensive examination must be taken and passed.
As far as licensing for physician assistant jobs, a Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination would be provided through the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants. Before a person could actually work as a PA, licensing must be in place. To maintain a career as a physician assistant, an individual would be required to complete 100 hours of continuing education every two years and take a recertification examination six years after the license to practice was achieved.
Earning Potential
All assistant jobs are based on certain criteria and affected by specific circumstances with physician assistant jobs being no difference. However, the range of salaries associated with this particular type of assistant job is impressive. Some of the things that would affect the amount of money a person could make includes years of experience, area of specialty, level and type of education, geographic location, advanced training, and actual work environment.
Specific to experience working in physician assistant jobs or the healthcare sector as a whole, salary has quite a range although overall, a person would expect to make between $65,000 and $115,000. However, the following information pertaining to experience breaks earning potential down for better understanding.
- One Year or Less – $63,000 to $77,000
- One to Four Years – $67,000 to $82,000
- Five to Nine Years – $73,000 to $91,000
- Ten to Nineteen Years – $76,000 to $96,000
- Twenty Years or More – $79,000 to $100,000
In addition to variances in salary based on number of years of experience, we also broke down salary for physician assistant jobs based on areas of expertise.
- Cardiovascular – $110,000
- Dermatology – $105,000
- Emergency Medicine – $99,000
- Neurosurgery – $98,000
- Critical Care Medicine – $97,000
- Public Health – $81,000
- Rheumatology $81,000
- Nephrology – $80,000
- OB GYN – $79,000
- Endocrinology – $78,000
Future Career Opportunities
It goes without saying that the future for physician assistant jobs is bright. Again, there are more jobs in the healthcare sector than there are qualified people. Then, considering that the need for physician assistants in particular is so great, opportunities for employment will continue to stay strong.
Many experts believe the number of physician assistants will skyrocket over the next ten years as the number of qualified doctors seems to struggle when compared to demand. As mentioned, sometimes a PA cares for an entire community so career security and opportunities are tremendous.
