Jim Love is a physician assistant in central Maine who thinks that America should move towards a model of medicine where care is given by non-physicians. Love, who as a young man tried but could not get into medical school, works in an office under a sign that says Sebasticook Family Doctors that is about 25 miles from his supervising physician. But, he says is confident in his skills and care.
I am not sure what you are trying to say in your post?
That PAs (many, many who could make medical school but chose to go another route) are not trained well enough to run a primary care clinic? Or you can’t possibly know anything without going to physician school? Or that he is a fool for believing he can provide quality care?
Just as an FYI there are PAs in Afghanistan and Iraq who are Battalion Surgeons, Flight Surgeons, running field hospitals, in charge of care for 500 troops, etc. Can a guy with years of experience really not provide good care?
And he is 62, maybe there are reasons he did not go to med school. Maybe there were no PA programs to apply to? Maybe he did not have money-not grades. Who knows.
If you think PAs and I am sure NPs are that poorly trained ask you family practice friends to allow us to sit for the FP Boards.
Posts like this do not do anything to move care forward.
Dave Mittman, PA
Why are PAs so easily threatened about their professional inadequacy? Because they ARE inadequate. I don’t buy the idea that “many, many” PAs could have gone to medical school but chose not to. They simply aren’t up to the academic standard required to practice medicine. I, personally, would rather get my medical care from someone who graduated at the top of his/her college class and then spent years studying and training as an MD, not someone with what amounts to an associate’s degree in medicine.