Interview with a Cardiology PA-C

1) Why did you become a Physician Assistant?
     I knew I wanted to go into medicine from a very young age.  I was fortunate to work in an office during the summer where they had PAs and got to see what they do.  So going into undergrad I knew I wanted to be a PA.  I love helping people and realized that mid-levels got to actually spend time with the patients and not have the hassle of running your own practice like an MD.  To me it is the best of both worlds: you get a lot of responsibility and autonomy but without the headaches of running a business (which I had no interest in).

2) Tell me about your application process (how did you get ready, how many schools did you apply to? Who did you interview with, what as it like, etc)
     This was a while ago but I applied I think the first year CASPA was available.  I don’t know how it is now but you could choose 8 schools to apply to with one fee.  So I took advantage and applied to 8 schools.  Several of the schools that are available now in Texas did not have a program when I was applying.  I interviewed with Health Science Center in San Antonio and Rosalind Franklin in Chicago.  I got an offer to interview for NOVA in Florida but did not go.  The interview consisted of tour, meeting current students and faculty and of course the interview.  At San Antonio the interview was panel style where you had one interview in front of 4 or 5 staff.  At Rosalind Franklin I interviewed with a few different faculty separately. 

3) What made you pick your program? While you were there, what stood out to you about your program? 
     I chose Rosalind Franklin because I really like the facilities, the staff, and what they told me about the program.  While I was there I really appreciated that they had us take A&P as a summer course and did not load up a lot of other courses with it.  We were able to focus on that very important first class.  I also liked that quite of few of our courses (especially pharmacology ones) were done with the medical school students.    

4) What area do you practice in? What other areas have you practiced in?
    I currently practice in Cardiology but I have also done Gastroenterology/Internal Medicine. 

5) What does a normal day look like for you? What kinds of things do you do? 
     My current job is just clinic.  I have split between hospital and clinic at other jobs which was nice because they are so different.  You would get tired of being in the clinic and then I could leave and go round at the hospital.  It kind of shook things up!  Now I work in a busy cardiology office and they don’t really need the mid-levels to go to the hospital.  Plenty to do in the office!  I see patients throughout the day both on my own and with an MD.  I also supervise stress testing and we get called back to testing if anything out of the ordinary is going on.  I call patients back with test results and for any questions they have.  The docs here do not do any phone calls and therefore the mid-levels do all of the ones that the medical assistants can not do.

6) How is being a PA different than you expected when you were a student?
     It really isn’t all that different than what I expected.  The PAs that I shadowed and did my clinical rotations with gave an accurate portrayal of the profession.

7) What professional evolution do you hope to see next for PAs?
     I hope that we continue to become better known and accepted.  I still have patients ask me when I’m going to finish school, be a doctor, etc.  I want patients to become familiar with our profession so they feel confident that we are capable and knowledgeable to see them, treat them, and order appropriate testing. 
     There is some talk right now about our profession going to having to specialize in certain fields.  I personally have changed between specialties and think it is one of the major advantages of our profession. 

8) Any advice for future applicants? 
     I have seen people in my profession who have a really hard time having to work under someone and the ultimate decision being up to the physician.  I always wonder why these people just didn’t go to med school.  I would just recommend that you realize at the end of the day that we work under a physician and although we normally get a lot of autonomy that is not always the case. 
     I think PA schools are looking for those well rounded people (grades are decent, medical experience, passion for healthcare, volunteering, shadowing a PA to show you are familiar with the profession and know what you are getting into!) – having just one of these things is not going to cut it. 
     Don’t give up.  Reapply!  Our profession is worth it!  Good luck!