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Unless the physician's assistant introduced herself as an MD, there's nothing unethical about your seeing the PA at your initial visit. If you want to be seen by an MD, ask to be seen by an MD.
A few years ago, I made an appt at a dermatologist office to have a suspicious mole looked at. I was seen by a PA. He just said, "OK, I'll remove the mole", which was about the size of a pencil eraser.
He made the incision so big, it required 20 stitches to close, and I now have a very large "railroad track" scar 4" long across my side with the incision line thicker than a pencil.
I don't think an experienced Doctor would have done that.
He made the incision so big, it required 20 stitches to close, and I now have a very large "railroad track" scar 4" long across my side with the incision line thicker than a pencil.
“Bones heal,chicks dig scars, pain is temporary, glory is forever.” - Evel Knievel
Most of the PAs and NPs that I’ve come across really know their stuff. The training may be less but in most cases they have years of previous healthcare experience to draw from. And since they “rose from the bottom” generally speaking they are known to be more personable caring and dare I say thorough while the general consensus is a MD will pop his head in review the chief complaint and disappear sending the MA/nurse back to do x y or z. Of course there’s always exceptions.
To the guy who doesn’t hate PAs because one botched a procedure, errors happen at all levels. Countless MDs DOs and others perform mistakes or less than stellar jobs. Doesn’t mean everyone who shared the title practices at the same competence level.
TWO. A PA degree takes TWO YEARS. So you get a basic BS and with an additional TWO years of training you are now a PA. There is nowhere near the same amount or quality of training for a PA as for an MD. That is why they have to be "supervised" by a doctor. They are basically slave labor for doctors who charge YOU way more to see the PA than they are paying him/her.
And yes, it is entirely unethical to wind up seeing anyone other than the doctor you called to make an appointment with. I had this happen to me once. ONE TIME. I had an appointment with a NEUROLOGIST and he palmed me off on a medical student. I never even saw the actual doctor, but they charged me for 2 hours of his time for "supervision" of the med student, who I only saw for 15 minutes, and the "doctor" never entered the exam room. I'm not paying for you to train someone else. I turned them over to Medicare fraud and they didn't bill me again.
I was referred to a neurologist BY A MEDICAL DOCTOR because I have neurological issues. Palming me off on a med student who proceeded to blow me off and not do any testing at all, not even a physical exam of any sort, was unethical. I still don't know what's wrong with me. I'll probably never know. The referring doctor was appalled. But it was now a snafu because I'd already been "seen" by a neurologist so they weren't going to pay for a visit to another neurologist.
So your conclusion is the MD has more training than the PA? While that surely is a profound conclusion, it misses the point. But your "slave labor" comment, which have re-stated is obviously well-considered. (and by that I really mean "hysterical"). You also do not seem to realize the PA postgraduate specialization course that some PAs do - which are another 1.5 yrs. So some PAs are in school 4 + 2 + 1.5 yrs. But who was arguing PAs spend more time in school than MDs. Exactly no-one.
Are you sure its the neurologist you should be seeing?
While this is true, PA programs typically require or strongly prefer full-time healthcare experience prior to admission in addition to having a BA. A person who just gets a BA and applies for a PA program slot without doing any sort of healthcare work is going to be at a disadvantage to someone who has a BS and has worked in some sort of healthcare environment for a at least a year or two prior to applying. PAs are for handling lower complexity cases, and *most* will have more than just 6 years of post HS training before practicing.
Exactly! I am a non-practicing PA and yes, healthcare experience was required for admission to the program. In addition, the training was very difficult; about half the class was unable to complete it, including the two nurses in the class. In my experience, both as a practitioner and a patient, PAs are better at actually doing an exam and not just ordering tests. The majority of issues for which patients go to a doctor can he handled very competently by a PA.
Why do I have to go back and ask for a doctor? When I called to make the appointment, I thought I was getting an appointment with a doctor. I was shocked when the person who came into exam me was named Daphne who looked like a real life Barbie.
When I made the appointment, they asked me questions about my age and name. When I arrived for my appointment they even had my name wrong. Imagine if your name is Pat and they assumed your name was Patricia They kept coming in the waiting room and asking for Patricia and your'e sitting there so finally I said well my name isn't Patrica, it's Pat are you asking for me. Not once did I ever tell them my name was Patricia or did I ever write on the forms that my name was Patricia.
Change doctors.
When we go to make an appointment to see our doctor, they is a pc-a available, but they ask you upfront if you want your appointment with the pc-a or your doctor. So there shouldn't be any surprises like you had. That's just unprofessional and people defending this is just silly. The office knew at the time of the OP's appointment that it was with the pc-a and not the actual doctor. They should have discussed this with you, so you had a choice, cause if your regular doctor wasn't available then you would have had the option to make it for a time the doctor was available for you.
It doesn't matter if you feel the pc-a was qualified or not, if you made the appointment with the doctor, and the doctor wasn't available they should have told you this and not surprised you. The very suggestion to make an appointment again and return is just wrong. More cost to you and your time, for no good reason other than a sloppy operation there who doesn't respect the patient.
Take this as an opportunity to find a better run medical practice.
Iike both the PAs and FNPs I see. Occasionally I see the doc at the derm, like when I went back for the 3rd time. They figured out he was needed. I think they are educated enough to know when they need the doc.
While this is true, PA programs typically require or strongly prefer full-time healthcare experience prior to admission in addition to having a BA. A person who just gets a BA and applies for a PA program slot without doing any sort of healthcare work is going to be at a disadvantage to someone who has a BS and has worked in some sort of healthcare environment for a at least a year or two prior to applying. PAs are for handling lower complexity cases, and *most* will have more than just 6 years of post HS training before practicing.
Still ridiculous. I SPECIFICALLY stated having a BS, not a BA. And the BS doesn't count as medical training. Only the ACTUAL MEDICAL TRAINING is medical training.
All the more reason not to be palmed off on a PA, NP, or med student. Especially in my case, where I have cognitive and neurological issues that can only be addressed by a properly trained specialist - who I never even saw. I had a doctor's office try to palm me off with a resident who was only going to be around for another year or less. I have ongoing complicated medical issues. I need and deserve better than a temporary worker who hasn't even completed their training. I refused his services.
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