pa to md

[nrddct]

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has anyone taken this path?

 

[drakkan2001]

I've heard of it but I don't know one personally. The only thing that I know that comes marginally close is an MD student dropping out his 3rd year and doing PA before going back to school.

 

[DrMom]

There is a PA in my med class.

 

[Rock Star]

Hello,

I'd surmise that a few have taken this route.

In my med school class we have two PAs and two nurse practitioners.

I feel that being a physician assistant definitely paved the way for me to get into med school.

In addition it seems to be a big plus during interviews for residency. This could be the case with any allied health experience prior to med school.

 

[timerick]

PA to MD is the long way to get to MD, but I bet they make excellent physicians when they're done.

 

[Brian Pavlovitz]

There are a couple of PA's in my class at St. George's University in Grenada. They seem to do quite well, although I agree that PA to MD is a long road.

Brian
MS-II, St. George's University

 

[DocWagner]

We had a PA in my medical school class, as well as a PharmD, several RT's, RN's and myself a PT.

I have an attending that was first an RN then a Nurse Practitioner, and now an attending Physician.

I think it is a worthwhile and noble path to follow.

A frequent poster "PACtoDOC" can be found on this website.

 

[PACtoDOC]

Hey Ethan, can you pass that name of the PA to me again, I missed it!!! LOLOL

Yes, I have honestly stopped replying to threads like these because if you search you can find similar ones where I have explained my situation many times before. The PA to physician route is by far the easiest way to make it through medical school if you can stomach swallowing tons of pride. But it is still freaking hard!! If year 2 lasts one day longer than it is scheduled I will likley be looking for a bell tower!! LOL. But now that PA programs are mostly Master's level and require a grand total of at least 6-7 years of post high school education, I think it is much smarter to go into medical school early on if that is what you really want to do. But taking this route is really no different than than the time it takes for a post-bacc route to medicine. The problem with this route is that it is so damn hard to get into PA school that your pre-reqs and grades should be good enough to simply go to med school. So I don't see a big trend in PA's going to med school more than the number that are currently doing it. In fact it may slow down. I really though I was one of the only people stupid enough to endure this much torture but it is much more common than one thinks. Almost every school has a PA or two in med school now, which if I were to guess puts several hundred PA's in medical school currently. I love being a PA, but I love the DO world much more. It is very similar in terms of being a slight minority in a larger pool of the majority, but DO's seem to stick together like no other group of professionals. 2 years to go basically!!

 

[DocWagner]

Yes, the DO world is certainly a fraternity...you get out of it a bit if you are in an allopathic residency. But whenever you see other DO's you give the AT Still handshake!! 😉

 

[medical22]

I've heard that there are certain schools (a small number) where med school after PA school is shorter than the usual 4 years. I don't know exactly which schools these are? Does anyone know? They accept some of the credits from PA school. Do students who go to med school after completing PA have to take the MCAT? Also, there are PA schools that are only ~2 years long, so it's actually not a longer way. It's the same as doing a Masters in any field. SOme students do a PhD and then med school---now that's what I call a long road.

 

[PACtoDOC]

Other than fly-by-night Carib programs like UHS-St. Kitts, there is absolutely nothing official ANYWHERE that allows a PA to enter medical school in an advanced standing position. I have also heard these "rumors" about some PA getting accepted to medical school and then being "exempted" from certain courses, but by and large this is probably the remote, rare exception. In fact, anyone who finds me some sort of proof or a link to a school that does have a policy that allows a PA to shave a year or two off the curriculum will receive dinner for two at their favorite local restaurant on ME. Anyone up for that challenge? Have fun, because I looked into it for months before I decided to do it the old fashioned way, like Smith-Barney. And after doing it this way I believe the only legitimate way to actually save a PA time in a medical school curriculum would be to exempt them from the 4th year if they chose. But even then, most would want to stay in the 4th year just to get a good look at the residencies they wanted to attend. You could exempt PA's from certain courses, but it would not change the amount of time in the program.

 

[rhp123]

Just curious, seems the PA to MDs known are either go to DO schools, or Carribean schools (might be a good one).

I heard there is much more difficulty for advanced allied health professionals to go to US Allopathic Schools. Since this will be a waste of whole education system in their eyes. So that means if somebody want to take RN/PA to MD route, their best shot is DO or Carribean?

Anybody heard PA or RN go to US MD schools? any idea or comment?

 

[PACtoDOC]

I can't speak for the other PA's who have gone to medical school, but I know just as many who are in allopathic programs as are in osteopathic programs. As for myself, I was drawn to the DO world because of their natural acceptance and recruitment of non-traditional students. And now that many MD programs are beginning to be more accepting of older non-traditional students, I think that is why you see more PA's in allopathic programs as well. I only know one PA who went to the Carribean, and that was because his wife got accepted there and they wanted to live the exotic beach life for a few years together. Most any PA is way overqualified for a Carrib school because even with poor MCAT scores and average grades, a PA should easily get into a US school either MD or DO. Not all US schools look favorably on former medical training but there are definitely ones that do.

 

[medical22]

I guess the bridge programs are rumors. So I suppose PAs are still required to take the MCAT if they want to start med school. Isn't it harder to take the exam at that stage (after finishing PA school) because by that time students have forgotten the natural sciences (organic chem, physics)?

PACtoDOC, What made you go into DO after PA? Is that what to wanted to do from the start? Just curious.

 

[PACtoDOC]

I knew only after developing a very successful practice as a PA that I wanted to become a physician. I literally decided in July that I wanted to apply for that cycle and thus I registered for and took the MCAT one month later. I studied pretty hard for about 2-3 hours per day for the MCAT. I interviewed at one MD school and one DO school, and I really felt like I belonged at the DO school. There are just so many things you learn as a DO that can help you in primary care, which in my mind puts a DO well ahead of MD colleagues in that area. Many MD's decide only after medical school that they would like to learn to use their hands the way we do. In fact, the residency I am probably going to attend is a mostly MD residency, but it is run by an MD who practices all aspects of Osteopathic Manipulation in addition to Family Medicine. This program seeks out DO's to help teach their MD counterparts about manip. So that is how I came to be at a DO school. But yes, the MCAT is a horribly painful hurdle to have to pass after practicing medicine for several years already. But there are things on the MCAT that are highly relevant to medicine and that will bump your score if you are already a PA.

 

[medtechv79]

I have one question. Say u go in to PA school really wanting to just be a PA but then after say 10 or so yrs in the profession realize u want to have more uhm....autonomy. Now u want to go to med school. U can't take shortcuts u have to do the 4 yrs plus 3 yrs intern and residency. Wow....see...that to me is what makes med school a tad more desirable if u consider time and money aspects.
That's my dilemma what if I go to PA school and later down the road decide to go to med school. I just don't know if I want to spend another 6-8 yrs when I'm in my late 30's or early 40's trying to study so hard when I could have bypassed this and just gone/tried straight for med school in my 20's.
What makes PA so appealing then??? especially for someone whose young....say mid to late 20's?

 

[deleted6669]

1.no required residency.(optional residencies for pa's at www.appap.org)
2.ability to change fields at will. a pa can work surgery 1 year and peds the next, etc.or peds and er and surgery at the same time.
3. lower debt load of 2-3 yr degree vs 4
4. malpractice covered by employer
5. faster growth rate of profession. the pa field(# of jobs) is expected to grow 50% in the next decade. this makes it the 3rd fastest growing field overall(see prior thread about growth rate)
6. no office overhead
7.ability to earn md level salary( > 100k) if you go into a specialty field like er, surgery, or ortho with less time spent in school and more of your money to keep because you have fewer loans.
if you have any doubt about being a pa go to an md/do program so you won't ever have to wonder what if?
to the earlier poster who asked about pa's in us md programs: there are lots. I have several friends who went this route. one finished 1st in his class and became chief resident at a prestigious em residency program.many pa's go the d.o. route because they tend to appreciate those with prior experience and don't frown at a 40 yr old medschool applicant like some md programs do.
one of my current md attendings was a former pa. went to georgetown med.not a shabby program.....

 

[Crypt Abscess]

There are two former PAs in my 4th year allo med school class. Both worked for a couple of years before med school. Both are TOP students in my class. They worked circles around the rest of us during third year, but seemed to struggle a bit the first two years. Crypt

 

[DocWagner]

I absolutely encourage this path and I have seen many that have pursued medical school shortly after a Physician Assistant program or left the PA program prior to graduating. I am currently working with a young Physician Assistant student and helping him during the application and interview process for medical school...he is one of the tops in his class.

 

[Rob77]

In my opinion, if youre applying to med school while still in PA school you never wanted to be a PA to begin with. That young PA student would have been better off skipping PA school and going right into med school from college. ---Rob

 

[PACtoDOC]

Whether one agree with the PA student applying for medical school is not the point. You cannot enforce your own sense of integrity on someone else. The bottom line, like it or not, is that there is no better degree to enter medical school with than a PA degree. And for people like me who completed a BS PA program, it was no extra school on the way to becoming a physician. My PA degree was my only BS degree and my MSPA was a typical canned master's degree that most PA's get who did not attend an MS program.

 

[DocWagner]

PACtoDOC,

I got my BS in Physical Therapy (same curriculum as today, but without the pre-existing undergrad degree)...it was the best decision of my life, I was able to enter med school without debt having practiced for 3 years. If I was in a MSPT or a DPT program, I would not be in the position I am today...Being a DO is the best decision I have ever made, and I encourage everyone to give it a look. Even in emergency medicine, my DO and PT skills put me heads and shoulders above the rest of my colleagues with regard to musculoskeletal disorders.

 

[PA_to_MD]

PA to MD/DO is a logical path and follows the traditional apprenticeship model just as well as MD to residency to practice.

Having any medical background before medical school allows you to have a perspective on medical care that some physicians never learn. Medicine is a field that requires patient care to be handled at all levels and a mistake at any of those can cost someone there lives.

Arguing about whose role is whose, only creates a rift in patient care and in the end the only one who suffers is the patient. We should instead focus on encouraging other health professionals to continue with their education and always consider taking the next step.

 

[Bandit]

docwager, off the subject here, but is that "Charlie Murphy!" a Dave Chapell reference?

 

[DocWagner]

Absolutely!

"Darkness!"

 

[Bandit]

dude, thats too damn good.

"I`m rick james bitch."