BackgroundAs the role of the physician assistant/associate grows globally, one question is: what is the level of patient satisfaction with PAs? Driven by legislative enactments to improve access to care, the PA has emerged as a ready and able medical professional to address workforce shortages. The aim of this study was to review the literature on patient satisfaction of PAs.ObjectivesThe basis for this review was to clarify working definitions, synthesize the evidence, and establish conceptual boundaries around the topic of patient satisfaction with PAs. The intent was to identify gaps in the literature and offer suggested undertakings for more clarification on the subject.MethodsA scoping review was undertaken. Literature from 1968 to 2019 was searched and filtered for eligibility. Those that met criteria were categorized by date, method, geography, themes, and design.ResultsIn total, there were 987 papers or reports that were identified through bibliography database searching. Additional articles found through snowball methodology-reviewing references (n = 11). Only English language articles emerged for analysis. From this effort, 25 articles surfaced from the filtering process for final inclusion. Most (72%) of the articles came from the United States of America, three from the United Kingdom, and one each from Ireland, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. Most articles were descriptive in nature. Some variations in methods emerged.ConclusionPAs are operational in 15 nations; their acceptance appears successful and satisfaction with their care largely indistinguishable from physicians. Findings from this analysis highlight one theory that when patient’s needs are met, satisfaction is high regardless of the medical provider. Areas for further research are identified.
Assistants' database. A total of 11,722 unique responses was received, yielding an overall response rate of 15.3%. Results: Only 25% of clinically active PAs self-identified as current preceptors of PA students in 2011. the most common characteristics of current preceptors were male gender, practicing full-time, working in a teaching hospital, providing inpatient care, and having more than 6 years of clinical practice. the most important incentives to consider precepting more students among all respondents were the quality of the students and the ability to earn CME category i credit. in contrast, the most important reported barriers were lack of support by either supervising physician or administrators.Preceptors and nonpreceptors ranked certain incentives and barriers differently. Conclusions: the proportion of PAs who are clinical preceptors is low. Knowing the differences in the characteristics and attitudes between PA preceptors and nonpreceptors will help inform future recruitment and retention efforts. Qualitative research is underway to further explore quantitative study findings.
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