Eh, still not that impressive. A system where you're required to have more clinical experience hours PRIOR to receiving any education or training instead of AFTER doesn't make much sense to me. Either you have a bedside manner and communication skills or you don't, and that's most of what you'll get with clinical experience prior to any training. The hundreds of hours I spent in a clinical setting prior to med school was probably, in terms of contributing to my clinical practice, about the equivalent of a few hours worth of internship. And, frankly, comparing 1000-5000 hours of experience prior to having any practical knowledge personally pales in comparison to the 11,500+ hours of post-graduate MD/DO training (or, similarly, the first few years working as a PA).
In the whole PA vs MD debate, I think it comes down to whether you'd be happier making final decisions or having to follow other people's decisions. People who don't want final responsibility (which is an incredibly valid choice) love the PA route...those who do want final responsibility are happier on the MD route. MDs often compare being a PA to being an intern for life, since you spend all the work doing the daily minutia but ultimately any decision you make can be overruled and double-guessed, which can become incredibly irritating once you do have experience and expertise. The PAs I know who love their job aren't bothered by that; the PAs I know who hate their job hate it because they would have managed patients differently than their MD dictates. Picture being a super-competent PA working under an idiot MD...if that idea horrifies you, you should go the MD/DO route. 😉
