Physician Encounter

Describe what you have learned from the variety of health, wellness or patient-centered encounters you have observed or participated in and how this has shaped or impacted your interest in pursuing education toward being a PA.

Through a variety of health, wellness and patient centered encounters I have observed and participated in it has impacted my interest in pursuing education toward being a PA by gaining knowledge everyday about the PA profession. I have had a variety of shadowing opportunities through shadowing a jail nurse, public health nurse, Nurse Practioner of reproductive health, a sanitarian, a birth to three coordinator, medical doctor and lastly a physician assistant. I learned the most knowledge by shadowing a Physician Assistant.

The role of a physician assistant is as vital to the health care team as any of the staff members on that team. They all need to work together to ensure accurate patient care, safety, and rights. I was able to observe various procedures where the physician assistant was able to bring in the doctor and get an opinion on what they should do. I really enjoyed seeing this because it explains how teamwork really does make patient care successful. The best advice I was given by a physician assistant was that the patient always comes first. A patient is very wise and respect should be given to them at all times. I have gained knowledge by recently being employed as a community health screener. Through this position I am able to interact with community members and learn about the different health concerns a person may encounter. Through this I am developing patient interaction that I would never have been able to learn through any other experience. The people in the community bring a great deal of knowledge that is often forgot about in a general practiced facility. I am able to speak with patients/ community members about their health concerns and participate in patient care. I am able to perform BMI, height and weight, capillary blood draws for

Since the town I grew up in did not have much diversity I found other ways to interact with individuals who are different from me. I was able to help out through various community service activities and participate in a variety of out of state community service trips. The community service activities and trips prepared me for an internship that gave me full insight to new social, cultural, and economic perspectives. Through the Wisconsin Area Health Education Center I was placed in a small northern Wisconsin county to gather information on why 2-year old immunization rates were low, investigate the influx of FoodShare, but the decline in Women, Infant, and Children, and facilitate meetings with community, and surrounding clinics on the issue of Wisconsin HealthCheck. Being from a small town I had an idea in my head that I was not going to encounter much diversity through my internship placement. I was wrong. I encountered a variety of people from the community with a different social and economic status. I enjoyed talking with the community and getting their input on why the county was meeting low numbers. A few answers had to deal with living situations, costs, and a lack of awareness or knowledge of the subject. I encountered a few people with different cultural perspectives, but social and economic perspectives were the most noted. Through my experiences I have been prepared to interact