PA Programs in Connecticut > CT Physican Assistant Information

Last Updated on December 8, 2023 by admin

How To Become A Physician Assistant In Connecticut

As you may know already, just like any other health care professional in the medical industry the physician assistants in Connecticut are also required to fully complete a formal education program that has been reviewed and approved by the ARC-PA, or the Accreditation Review Commission on the Education of Physician Assistants. In order to be eligible to enroll in one of these physician assistant training programs in Connecticut, you will have to have a Bachelor’s Degree or some other equivalent degree that shows you have received college education, along with a background experience of at least 36 months in the health care environment. This experience can be in any field related to medicine, but more often than not the applicants have some solid experience in emergency medical service or in the nursing field. Although the admission requirements may vary slightly from one institution of higher learning to another, these are the basic requirements.

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Once you have been admitted, the next step you need to take in order to become a PA in the state of Connecticut is to complete an accredited physician assistant training program. That being said, you have a wealth of options at your disposal, but most of the time future PAs opt for Associate’s or for Bachelor’s degree programs, although there are some PA training programs that also result in two-year master’s degrees as well.

The curricula consists of theoretical classroom instruction, clinic experience as well as laboratory training, while the most common topics include patient assessment classes, pharmacology and diagnostics classes, anatomy, physiology and so on and so forth. Given the fact that practical, hands-on experience is often more important than the theoretical training, in the final year of training students are required to gain their practical experience through clinical rotations that will greatly benefit them in the long run.

At the time being, there are more than 2,800 physician assistants that work in the state of Connecticut, and there is a 20% estimated job growth expected by the year 2026, therefore it is safe to say that this is a very appreciated medical professional that also happens to be very rewarding financially, as these health care providers receive an annual median salary of around $135,000 in this state.

Physician Assistant In Connecticut: Job Description

Physician assistants who work in the state of Connecticut are trained to provide advanced medical and health care services, under the attention of a licensed physician. These health care providers can specialize in patient counseling, treatment and diagnosis and such, and it is not uncommon for them to complete physical check-ups or even to prescribe medications. In some cases, the physician assistant might also order, perform and then interpret different tests, such as CT scans, MRIs, x-rays and a variety of other similar scans in order to check and see whether there are any deviations from normal.

These professionals must also obtain and compile an accurate patient medical data record, that includes progress notes as well as the detailed health history of the patient, as soon as he is admitted to the hospital, clinic or private physician’s office. These professionals can also observe their patients on either house calls or on hospital rounds, and in some cases they also order therapies and treatments, they update the patient charts and they report back to the licensed physician that supervises them whenever necessary.

License And Certification Requirements

If you have decided to become licensed or certified as a PA in the state of Connecticut, then you must have the following: a baccalaureate or higher degree provided by an accredited institution of higher education in this state, and you must also graduate from an ARC-PA accredited physician assistant training program. After that, you must also pass the NCCPA, or the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants exam, and you must also have at least 60 hours of didactic instruction in pharmacology.

Salary and Career Info

The interactive chart above is a visual representation of the annual salary of Connecticut PA’s compared to the national annual salaries, all based on the latest May 2022 Occupational Employment Statistics figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Physician Assistant Programs In Connecticut

There are several accredited physician assistant programs in Connecticut that you can enroll in, if you want to pursue a lucrative medical career in this field, and one of the most famous ones is the Quinnipiac University in Hamden, which offers a master’s degree program.