PA's and their ability to accept or deny cases

[priam18]

Hi there.

I was reading up on the PA profession and was wondering just how much control PA's have over which health cases they can or cannot take on. If they work with a doctor, are they required to assist doctors in everything the doctor does? For example, let's say (for some reason or another) a PA has an aversion to feet. While the cases covered in his/her work place aren't all regarding feet, some are. Do they have a choice in taking these cases, or are they just stuck?

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[niko327]

I'm not really sure what you are asking, some things you can avoid doing and some things you can not.

Let's say you really don't like to do rectal exams ( I am not a big fan of them myself), but pt X comes in to the ER with some complaint that requires the use of anti-coagulation, and you need to do a rectal to check for blood. What are you going to do? You are going to do the rectal exam because even though you hate to do rectals, you work in an ER. If you suddenly decided at that very moment that you are quitting your job and you are leaving then I guess in that sense you can reject the patient. And maybe your livelihood, but that's another matter entirely.

On the other hand let's say you really hate doing pelvics, then I would really avoid joining an OB/Gyn practice. In this way you can avoid doing the thing you have an aversion to.

If you are in a general practice and somebody comes in with a foot complaint, you are going to be expected to see them. It will get old pretty fast asking your colleagues to take this patient or see that patient because you don't like feet.

If you absolutely hate to examine lungs or hearts then maybe you should consider another field besides medicine.

As a PA you are usually not the owner of a practice and therefore not in a position to accept or reject patients just because you don't like feet or rectals or whatever. But even as a doctor, you are reasonably expected to see patients regardless of their problem if it falls under what your practice does. Nobody will expect you to do a pelvic if what you do is ears, nose and throat.

Yes I ramble, I know. But this should answer your question I would think.

 

[guetzow]

Simply put, those with aversions to weaping lesions should not be working in Dermatology, etc.