Last Updated on December 15, 2023 by admin
How To Become A Physician Assistant In Hawaii
If you have decided to become a physician assistant, then you should know that PAs are very sought-after not just in the state of Hawaii, but in all the 50 states of the USA. Simply put, physician assistants are skilled medical professionals who practice medicine under the close attention of a qualified and licensed surgeon or physician, and the job growth and demand for physician assistants has sky-rocketed over the past few years. In order to become a physician assistant, you must pursue your certification in this medical field, but once you have received it you will be able to perform a variety of tasks, from examining the patients and interpreting the X-ray results to ordering blood tests and performing them.
This is particularly important for a state such as Hawaii, with a growth rate of 15% in the PA field. Having said that, upon graduation from the PA training program and getting your degree, you will have to pay a non-refundable fee for the certification application, and then sit for the certification exam. The certification is set to expire, this is why it is important to complete and mail or fax a renewal application at least a month before it expires – in addition to this, you will also have to pay a renewal fee.
Physician Assistant Career Description
Physician assistants play a pivotal role in the medical industry – these professionals practice medicine as part of a bigger team, and they are formally educated to provide and prescribe treatment, to diagnose injuries and diseases as well as to diagnose the patients and to work closely with other health care providers, in order to make sure that the patient gets high quality services.
In addition to this, other duties and responsibilities of physician assistants include educating and counseling both patients and their families, ordering and interpreting various diagnostic tests such as blood tests or x-rays, as well as conducting physical examinations designed to check the health of the patient and to keep the patients’ medical histories updated and accurate.
The physician assistants can specialize in one of the many different areas of medicine, including family medicine, primary medicine, psychiatry or emergency medicine. In addition to this, these professionals also close incisions at the end of a surgery, they can perform routine vaccinations whenever needed and, depending on the work environment, the physician assistant may also be required to complete various administrative tasks. Today’s physician assistants can be found in state, local and private educational services such as universities or community colleges, outpatient care centers, offices of health practitioners, as well as private, local or state hospitals.
Certification
As mentioned above, one of the most important aspects in the career of every physician assistant in the United States of America is the licensure – it is important for physicians to be licensed in all states, and in order for them to do that they will have to sit for the PANCE exam, or the Physician Assistant National Certification exam, which is administered and overseen by the NCCPA, or the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants.
It is important for every future physician assistant to sit for this exam, and if he managed to successfully pass it, he will be awarded the PA-C designation, or the Physician Assistant-Certified designation. Nonetheless, it is important or these professionals to complete at least 100 hours of continuing education every two years, and they will also have to sit for a recertification exam every 10 years, from the moment they are awarded the certification. There are many reasons why a physician assistant should consider getting their license – not only will this be a badge of honor that shows that the health care provider is skilled, knowledgeable and experience, but it can also significantly increase the job opportunities.
Salary and Career Info
The interactive chart above is a visual representation of the annual salary of Hawaii 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.
Accredited Physician Assistant Schools
At the time being, there is only one AVMA accredited physician assistant training school in the state of Hawaii, and that is the Windward Community College which has managed to receive its initial AVMA accreditation back in 2015. There are no ARC-PA accredited PA programs in the state.
