Postgraduate Physician Assistant Training Programs in the United States: Emerging Trends and Opportunities

Abstract

the United States. This descriptive review was completed for the purpose of delineating existing postgraduate PA programs and projecting similarities among them. Methods: This descriptive review used a non-experimental, descriptive research design to characterize general program characteristics, financial benefit or cost to the postgraduate trainee, and program curricula. Data were collected by reviewing resources available to the public from the Association for Postgraduate Physician Assistant Programs (APPAP) Web site, individual program Web sites, program brochures, and advertisements for postgraduate training programs. An attempt was made to contact each program for verification of information via e-mail addresses associated with program directors. Results: Results from the review were categorized as length of program, general program characteristics, number of applicants, entry-level degree, application acceptance, primary program affiliation, credential awarded, postgraduate program and medical director credentials, stipend or tuition by specialty, number of programs by year started, and curriculum and benefit breakdown. Conclusions: Data provided in this descriptive review delineates existing practices and similarities among programs that show commonalities in training postgraduate PAs. As more postgraduate PA programs arise, accreditation of all programs will be necessary to monitor ongoing excellence in postgraduate training and the emergence of new postgraduate training programs. Feature Editor’s Note: As the number of postgraduate PA programs continues to increase, it is increasingly important for programs to document their educational efforts as a first step toward developing outcome measures. This article describes a number of characteristics of current postgraduate PA programs and makes a valuable contribution to the sparse literature in this area.