PA calling himself Doctor

[Navyanesdoc]

Does anyone have or know of any Navy regs guiding the usage of the title Doctor. Im not here to argue merit of DNP or PHD or... I recently interacted with a former corpsman who, living overseas told me of the poor care she had been receiving from a "doctor." When I looked the gentleman up, he was a PA. My corpsman was very clear that this PA introduces himself as Dr... Any navy regs or instructions might help out. Thx

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[Gastrapathy]

Does anyone have or know of any Navy regs guiding the usage of the title Doctor. Im not here to argue merit of DNP or PHD or... I recently interacted with a former corpsman who, living overseas told me of the poor care she had been receiving from a "doctor." When I looked the gentleman up, he was a PA. My corpsman was very clear that this PA introduces himself as Dr... Any navy regs or instructions might help out. Thx

No instructions that I know. But if the hospital CO is actually a physician, he'd get an email from me.

 

[jabreal00]

A PA should not refer to him or herself as "Doctor." This is misrepresentation. What I've seen is that they don't correct patients when they are referred to "Doctor" by the patient.

 

[haujun]

I have seen medics are called "Doc" by some soldiers and I get called by "PA" by some soldiers. LOL. I correct them that I am a physician and not "PA."

I guess to soldier's eye...medic, PA, doctor, NP etc...are all doctors...medical professionals.

 

[orbitsurgMD]

Does anyone have or know of any Navy regs guiding the usage of the title Doctor. Im not here to argue merit of DNP or PHD or... I recently interacted with a former corpsman who, living overseas told me of the poor care she had been receiving from a "doctor." When I looked the gentleman up, he was a PA. My corpsman was very clear that this PA introduces himself as Dr... Any navy regs or instructions might help out. Thx

It is one thing for a layman, service member or not, to call the person who is seeing him for a medical service "Doc," but it is an entirely different thing for a clinical provider to introduce himself as "Doctor" when he is not a medical doctor. The latter is deception and unprofessional, and in some places also unlawful.

 

[militaryman]

As a PA-C with 8 years of experience, I would be very suprised if a PA was going around introducing himself or herself as "Dr so and so" unless they went thru the clinical docotorate program in EM thru the Army or held some other doctorate degree. If this person is truely introducing themselves as a doctor and they truly do not hold a doctorate degree then that would be grounds for for a complaint thru their state licensing board that every PA including military PA's must obtain in addition to their NCCPA certification or a complaint thru the hospital chain of command. If this person does have a doctorate degree in some other field, they should still tell their patients they are a PA-C and not a MD/DO to avoid confusion.

 

[Gastrapathy]

As a PA-C with 8 years of experience, I would be very suprised if a PA was going around introducing himself or herself as "Dr so and so" unless they went thru the clinical docotorate program in EM thru the Army or held some other doctorate degree. If this person is truely introducing themselves as a doctor and they truly do not hold a doctorate degree then that would be grounds for for a complaint thru their state licensing board that every PA including military PA's must obtain in addition to their NCCPA certification or a complaint thru the hospital chain of command. If this person does have a doctorate degree in some other field, they should still tell their patients they are a PA-C and not a MD/DO to avoid confusion.

A PA with a clinical doctorate is a PA. Wanna be called doctor in a clinical practice, graduate from medical school. Want wedding invitations to say Dr. PA, go for it.

 

[SuperSoccer19]

As a PA-C with 8 years of experience, I would be very suprised if a PA was going around introducing himself or herself as "Dr so and so"....

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it happens.

Sometimes overtly as an inappropriate intro, sometimes by hiding behind your rank.

 

[IlDestriero]

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it happens.

Sometimes overtly as an inappropriate intro, sometimes by hiding behind your rank.

That's what I saw all the time with several senior, and many junior CRNAs. "I'm CDR Jackhole with anesthesia, I'm going to do your anesthetic today."

 

[militaryman]

A PA with a clinical doctorate is a PA. Wanna be called doctor in a clinical practice, graduate from medical school. Want wedding invitations to say Dr. PA, go for it.

Gastrapathy,

As a future MD, I agree with you ( I am in medical school). When you are seeing patients as a PA-C you should always identify yourself as a PA-C. It is confusing for patients if you do not. However, if you have a doctorate degree you can call yourself a doctor, just like PhDs, psychologists, podiatrists, PTs, NPs, nutritionists, optometrists, etc do. I do not agree with it because it is confusing for patients. I also believe that their shouldn't be any clnical doctorage degrees for midlevels. I agree if you want to be a MD than go to medical school. Interstestingly is that the only clinical doctorate degee for PAs that I am aware of is the Baylor-Army Emergency Medicine program. However almost all NP programs have now or will be transitioning to clinical doctorate degrees.

That said I have never seen a PA misrepresent themselves as a MD. Maybe that is because I am a National Guard PA-C and only deal with active duty medical officers when on deployments. If you, as a medical doctor, see a PA calling himself or herself a doctor when they are not I would hope you would make an on the spot correction. If that fails to correct the unlawful misrepresenation I would hope you would report it. Keep up the good fight.

 

[militaryman]

That's what I saw all the time with several senior, and many junior CRNAs. "I'm CDR Jackhole with anesthesia, I'm going to do your anesthetic today."

I can see your example happening.
CDR Jackhole with anesthesia should let his patients know he is an CRNA.
" CDR Jackhole"

 

[BOHICA-FIGMO]

Have yet to see a PA calling himself a "doctor." Realize that (at least in the Navy) most PAs are former enlisted IDCs (often HMC and HMCS) with a TON of experience. Those who dismiss them because they have the attitude "I'm a physician and you are just a PA" do so at their own peril.

Personally, I am far more concerned with nurses receiving a DNP calling themselves "Doctor." But, hey, the Army's top "surgeon" is a nurse; so I guess anything can happen! (sorry Army, I just couldn't resist)

 

[Apollyon]

Personally, I am far more concerned with nurses receiving a DNP calling themselves "Doctor." But, hey, the Army's top "surgeon" is a nurse; so I guess anything can happen! (sorry Army, I just couldn't resist)

I posted it in another thread - anyone who is under the "Army Medical Department" banner - from docs to veterinarians - is statutorily eligible for SG. A medevac pilot or an audiologist or MBA healthcare administrator or a military entomologist could become SG. A lot of the wind on this issue went out of my sails when I discovered this.

 

[bustbones26]

Whenever I was deployed, I'd be walking on the JSS and a soldier would run up to me and say, "Are you the PA?". I would just answer honestly, "NO". Then, they'd walk away before I had a chance to explain the difference. Yes, medics are routinely called Doc on the line.

 

[pgg]

Yes, medics are routinely called Doc on the line.

This never bothered me in the least. There's a lot of history and tradition behind Marines calling their Corpsmen "doc" - and everyone implicitly understands that they're not physicians. There's no deception going on.

However, if you have a doctorate degree you can call yourself a doctor, just like PhDs, psychologists, podiatrists, PTs, NPs, nutritionists, optometrists, etc do.

They do so at their peril in many areas. For non-physicians with a doctorate level degree to introduce themselves as "doctor so-and-so" in a clinical environment is intentionally deceptive, because the patients expect that such a person will turn out to be an actual physician.

 

[mtnlion44]

I have seen medics are called "Doc" by some soldiers and I get called by "PA" by some soldiers. LOL. I correct them that I am a physician and not "PA."

I guess to soldier's eye...medic, PA, doctor, NP etc...are all doctors...medical professionals.

Yeah thats whats great about rank

 

[BigNavyPedsGuy]

Yeah thats whats great about rank

This might be the most useless, pointless bump to a 2.5 year old thread I've ever seen. I'm not even sure what it means.

 

[pgg]

This might be the most useless, pointless bump to a 2.5 year old thread I've ever seen. I'm not even sure what it means.

Everything else he's posted has been about getting expelled from school.

Weird.