Essential Question: What justification is there, for me, in becoming a Physician's Assistant, rather than the alternative of a Doctor?
What I assumed I knew couldn’t be more wrong. I assumed Physician's Assistants did virtually nothing, except what the doctor did not want to do. After conducting my research, I realized PAs do almost everything a doctor does, if not more. In fact, when most patients come in to be treated, they do not even see the doctor and are treated primarily by the PA. Physician's Assistants can diagnose, treat, and examine patients. People usually do not consider the occupation of a PA, because they assume pay is not worth it- at least that is what I assumed. This was one of my main concerns, but I concluded that not only is pay extremely high, but it can come close to exactly what a doctor would make. The physician’s assistant I interned with even explained to me that in a lifetime a PA would actually make more profit than a doctor, because they are able to start work sooner. When considering my argument, I knew I had to consider the negatives as well. I questioned doctors and PAs to get accurate information. The only true negative I gathered was that Physician’s Assistants have more hours to work and do not always get to choose when they work. This was something I had previously assumed, but when I took it into consideration I thought, “well is that how most jobs are?” I discovered that even though the occupation of a Physician’s Assistant used to be unpopular and somewhat forgotten, it is now growing at an extremely fast rate. The average employment growth of doctors is only eighteen percent, while PA’s is thirty-eight percent. It is becoming a more recognized and necessary occupation in the medical field. My research of this topic has ultimately helped me to decide my career path. I will most definitely become a Physician's Assistant. I always assumed a doctor was the only occupation for me. I always assumed I would be in school for half of my life to acquire the job I would enjoy. I always assumed there was no alternative. Without this opportunity to mentor in the hospital and conduct this research, I never would have discovered how wrong I was. My research will hopefully help those individuals that struggled with what to do with their life, but knew they had a passion for the care of people. Becoming a Physician’s Assistant rather than a medical doctor proved to be the best option for me. In all, the justification in becoming a PA is based on schooling, pay, workload, and liability as compared to a doctor. Schooling is less, pay is equal, workload appears more, but is manageable, and liability falls on the doctor. If you want to be in charge and care for patients firsthand, without added stress, than a Physician's Assistant should definitely be at the top of your consideration.