Last Updated on October 21, 2021 by admin
How To Become A Physician Assistant In South Dakota
As you may already know, physician assistants are widely considered to be trusted members of the health care team, and they make an average yearly salary of around $86,000 in the state of South Dakota. These professionals work in a highly competitive and challenging environment, and the first thing every future PA in South Dakota has to do is to graduated from a Physician Assistant Degree Program. It is highly recommended to complete the pre-requisites while you are still in high school, if you are absolutely convinced that you want to work as a physician assistant later on. That being said, it is highly recommended to focus on math, physics, chemistry and biology if you want to increase your chances of being accepted to an ARC-PA approved physician assistant program. Most of the PAs who work in the state of South Dakota these days start off by getting their Bachelor’s Degree in the field, although for those who are not satisfied with an entry-level position in the health care setting that is far from being enough.
Throughout the course of the training, which can take anywhere between two and four years or more, students will get a deeper insight into some of the most important fields for their chosen profession, such as hematology, dermatology, neurology, patient assessment, biostatistics and epidemiology, etc. After completing the theoretical classroom training, the next and perhaps most important step that they need to take in order to pursue a lucrative career in South Dakota is to complete the clinical experience requirements.
Physician Assistant In South Dakota – Job Description
The job description, duties and responsibilities of a physician assistant in South Dakota vary greatly depending on the employer, the work environment as well as the amount of training and experience of each PA. Having said that, it is important for the physician assistant to assess the patient to provide continuing care services, to provide pre-operative and post-operative care services, to be gentle and genuinely caring with the patient, as well as to explain both to the patient and to his or her family how to manage a particular illness or condition. In addition to this, it is also up to the PA to administer immunizations and injections, to update the medical record of the patient, to prescribe medications whenever needed, to order as well as to interpret different tests such as x-rays and so forth.
Physician Assistant In South Dakota – Licensure And Examination
Both the licensure and the certification process play a pivotal role in the professional life and career of any physician assistant. That being said, it is important for every physician assistant to apply for the PANCE examination immediately after graduation. The PANCE exam can be retaken every three months, in case you fail it the first time: administered by the National Commission on the Certification of Physician Assistants, the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination costs $475 to take, it is a multiple choice computer-based examination and it is designed to test your medical and surgical skills and knowledge.
After passing the PANCE examination and getting your certification, it is important to apply for the South Dakota State License, which requires you to complete and submit an application fee, to pay the licensing fee, to have the official transcripts sent over to the South Dakota Board by the ARC-PA approved physician assistant training school you have graduated from, as well as to pass the criminal background check. Both the licensure and the certification are set to expire – the physician assistant license will expire once every two years, while the physician assistant certification is set to expire every ten years. The licensure can be easily renewed and without the hassles, but for the renewal of the certification, every physician assistant in South Dakota must log in a minimum of 100 continuing medical education credits every two years, and to sit for the PANRE examination towards the end of the 10th year.
Salary and Career Info
The interactive chart above is a visual representation of the annual salary of South Dakota 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 South Dakota
If you have decided to pursue a career as a physician assistant in the state of South Dakota, then you should know that you can get formally trained only within one ARC-PA approved physician assistant training program, which is the University of South Dakota in Vermillion.
List of All Accredited PA Programs
The accrediting agency is ARC-PA and they have 1 fully accredited AL programs listed as of November 2014.
1. University of South Dakota
Initial Accreditation Date: April 1, 1995
Next ARC-PA Review: March 2020
Website: http://www.usd.edu/health-sciences/physician-assistant/
