Comparing Physician Assistants to Nurse Practitioners

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There are many occupations in the medical field that can go in many various directions. Have you ever wondered how the occupations are all similar, besides the fact that it is the medical field? Vorvick and Zieve say “more women than men have found an interest in the medical field for physician assistants and nurse practitioners. Fifty-eight is the average percent of women PA’s in the medical field.” The two occupations: physician assistant and nurse practitioner are similar with the education needed, the specialties, and the work environment. Physician Assistant A Physician Assistant (PA) practices medicine with a national and state license. They are authorized to prescribe medicine in all the fifty states (What is a PA? para. 1). Physician Assistants’ responsibilities vary on the state laws, the practice setting, and their experience. They can perform procedures, get medical histories, conduct physical examinations, diagnose and treat illnesses, prescribe medications, order and interpret laboratory tests, and assist in surgeries and counseling (What is a PA? para. 3) PA’s can care for about eighty percent of patient conditions (Vorvick & Zieve para. 2). PA programs are based on the medical curriculum and clinical achievements. The programs are very competitive to get accepted into (What is a PA? para. 4). By your freshman year, you need to find and apply to PA programs you are interested in. Before you start the PA program you need to have some experience. Most programs require you to have clinical experience before starting the program (Kimberly para. 5). You can get clinical experience at physician or doctor offices, ambulatory clinics, or acute and long term facilities. Clinical experience includes family and internal medicin... ... middle of paper ... ...om for more stressful and fast paced or a doctor’s office that is calmer and not so stressful. I have always had an interest for surgery, but haven’t like how schooling is involved. Now, I won’t have a lot of schooling to go through and can still be able to assist in the surgeries. Works Cited ExploreHealthCareers.org. (2014, April 25). Nurse Practitioner Health Careers. (2012, January 1). Health Careers. Kimberly, M. (2014, February 20). 5 Tips for Getting into PA School - PAs Connect. PAs Connect. Mayo School of Health Sciences. (2014, January 20). Nurse Practitioner Nurse practitioner (NP): MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. (2014, February 26). U.S National Library of Medicine. Vorvick, L. J., & Zieve, D. (2011, August 12). Physician Assistant profession (PA): MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. U.S National Library of Medicine What is a PA?. (2013). AAPA.

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