Posted 31 July 2010
We have started a new section on the website entitled Articles for which we are seeking submissions from our members about their working environment and experiences working as a PA. If you would like to have an article published on the website, please contact us for consideration.
Posted 11 June 2010
The first cohort of six physician assistants participating in the NHS Lanarkshire Physician Assistant Rotation in Surgical Specialties (PARISS) began their year of post-graduate training in March 2010.
It has been just over two years since the first US trained surgical physician assistant in orthopaedics arrived in Scotland as part of the Scottish PA Pilot program. The Scottish Pilot Project highlighted the overall benefits of the PA role in the Scottish NHS. The surgical PA role has been especially successful and this is reflected by the significant increase in surgical PAs in the USA where surgical specialties now account for greater than 25% of all PAs in the US.
As a result of the marked success of the first Scottish surgical PA, a subsequent orthopaedic PA was recruited to assist with development of the surgical PA role in Scotland. This has also proven to be highly successful. Now this orthopaedic PA, along with physician supervisors, leads the surgical training year, providing an ideal ‘role model’ for the surgical trainees, particularly the newly trained British trainees.
Within PARISS, the PAs each rotate through A & E, orthopaedics, general and vascular surgery. Introducing PAs into the latter two specialties at Hairmyres Hospital has been one of the major goals of the program. The hope is that the vascular and general surgeons will realize the value of PAs in their department and say "we want one of those". Currently there are four British trained PAs and two from America. The members of PARISS Class of 2011 include: David Harper, Roz Holmes, Peter Jenkins, James Ennis, Annie Boyd, and Sarah Benson.
Recruitment for the 2011 'PARISS’ cohort will commence in the autumn 2010.
Posted 29 May 2010
BMJ Careers this month features FY2 Doctor Stuart Goudie's article on his experience working with the first three UK Physician Assistants working in a surgical specialty at Hairmyres Hospital, East Kilbride.
Posted 10 May 2010
This April's issue of UHB's Inside Out publication features recent graduates Matthew Bishop (Wolverhampton) and Kate Lamb (Birmingham) and their supervising physician Dr Nandan Gautam at Selly Oak Hospital. To see the article, click here.
Posted 8 March 2010
Physician Assistant students and UKAPA Student Board members Amy Green and Neil Howie were profiled in The London Student Journal of Medicine. Click here to download the article (PDF).
Posted 16 February 2010
Clic here for the article
Posted 16 February 2010
UKAPA’s Immediate Past President, Neil Erickson, continues to be active in participating in the RCGP’s General Practice Foundation. For more information on this, see the related article at OnMedica.
Posted 16 February 2010
In an effort to sustain the organisation’s continued viability, UKAPA’s Board of Directors recently voted to increase the annual membership fees from £75 to £100. Three year membership rate options were also discontinued for members and associate members. Student and Associate annual membership rates were not changed. These changes are effective 16 February 2010.
The RCPE continues to offer free Associate membership to all physician assistants. This service is provided as a means of educational opportunity to all those training in medicine, and the RCPE have extended that opportunity to the PA profession as well. For more information, click here.
