Has the though of training as a physician's assistant ever crossed your mind? Though this position does not call for a PhD, it does deal with treating illness and other health care services. You will of course be working a physician's office under supervision, and in some cases acting as a physician. In addition to that you will be able to counsel on preventive health care, assist in surgery, write prescriptions, and even give medical orders. One of the best things about being a PA is the fact that many will opt to see the PA over the standard physician.

The Requirements

As of right now, there are 149 different schools which can claim accreditation in the United States. The biggest problem at the moment of course is that it is impossible for anyone to agree on what the requirements actually are. Obviously you must have passion for your job, which is to be expected. If you don't have passion, how could you expect to do your job anyway?

Another important requirement of course is that of ensuring you have a working knowledge of physiology, anatomy, and biochemistry. If you have any trouble with these area, then you won't have an easy time of it in the PA field.

Before you can become a physician's assistant, you will need to attend a school, and the admissions committee will look at your credit hours, the credibility of your university, and even the difficulty of your coursework. If you want to be accepted, then you will additionally need at least four years of experience in the medical field. It is generally accepted that an individual should have experience in multiple sectors of healthcare including nursing, medical volunteerism, and of course, emergency services. There is a small possibility that you will be admitted to a program without meeting those basic guidelines, but it is not incredibly likely.

Medical experience alone is not enough -- you will need to make sure you have a GED or a high school diploma. Keep in mind that you will need to possess a certain level of maturity to do your job effectively, and with that being the case, you might want to assess yourself before you attempt to get into this field. You will need the ability to lead, which comes standard with being a PA.

Things are changing all the time in this job, which means you need to be flexible. Naturally this is going to involve reading the latest medical texts, and of course making sure you're ready as soon as a new medical technology comes out. This will include new pharmaceuticals of course, and while these items may not be common knowledge, but these updates are generally filed with the FDA and will be available for study. Bearing that in mind, you may realize that it's not all fun and games. It is hard, and it is often filled with study. This is a very demanding field, and if you meet the tough requirements, then you're definitely going to land a great job in the field. 



Leave a Reply.