Physician Assistants (PA) are an established role in the US, but to date have been uncommon in Australia. The Bachelor of Health Science (Physician Assistant) is a three year course offered at James Cook University in Townsville with students entering having experience in other aspects of healthcare previously. After graduating, Physician Assistant Tanya Buchanan found a role with the emergency physicians at Peninsula Private Hospital in Victoria, an early adopter of a Physician Assistant in the ED. She undertakes most aspects of clinical practice including history, examination, procedures, and the management of patients, under the direct supervision of FACEMs. There are approximately 20 Australian trained PAs to date (Australian Society of Physician Assistants) with accreditation and regulation aiming to fall under ACCRM in the near future.
Benefits:
A vocational choice rather than rotation through the Emergency Department, resulting in the potential for:
- Ongoing productive working relationships
- PA proficiency in common ED processes and procedures
- Redistribution of tasks (e.g. note writing, ordering tests, simple procedures) from FACEM to PA allowing optimal use of FACEM for critical clinical tasks (e.g. clinical decision making, communication with patient/family/specialists)
Considerations:
- Requires time for staff to understand the role, and the fit within the ED workforce
- Not licensed to prescribe medication
- Variations in interdependent relationships between PA and FACEM
ACRRM Position Statement on Physician Assistants: https://www.acrrm.org.au/the-college-at-work/position-statements/policy/2014/08/13/position-statement-on-physician-assistants
Department of Health – Queensland Government, ‘Physician Assistant Clinical Governance’, 2016 https://www.health.qld.gov.au/qhpolicy/docs/gdl/qh-gdl-397.pdf
Ratings
Role Implementation: Moderate
Cost: Medium
Change Management: Moderate
Contact:
Dr Kang Lim. Director, Emergency Department
Peninsula Private Hospital is a private urban hospital in Victoria, Australia with 12,000 ED attendances per annum and an admission rate of 30%
