Physician Assistant Reflection

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Over the past few months, I have had several interactions with physician assistants and their career. One experience was more personal which was my first visit to an orthopedic for my knee injury. This orthopedic so happened to be a PA rather than a MD and was the first to evaluate me and diagnose me with an ACL tear. The importance of this visit is it helped me to understand that physician assistants are very comparable to doctors and perform very similar tasks. However, at the end of this visit I also realized that they do work under a doctor and the PA then referred me to the sports medicine doctor in which she reports to.

In addition to experiencing from a patient's point of view, I also directly observed a physician assistant, Diana …show more content…

At the Miriam Hospital, I observed an ultrasound being performed on a woman's groin and leg. The ultrasound was a test ordered by Diana and done to find blood clots or a possible baker cyst which she believed to be the issue. After looking at the results from the ultrasound, I witnessed Diana inform her patient and provide her with information on how to care for the baker cyst that was found. Diagnosing patients and counseling them is an important role of a physician assistant and this was clearly shown through observing the care given to this patient.

During another visit. I observed the simple task of taking vital signs. This is extremely important because physician assistants compare results from the patient's initial evaluation to the results after they started being treated. Also, at the Miriam Hospital, I witnessed a young girl's thumb laceration being stitched. During his process, I was able to communicate with the patient and help her feel comfortable in the traumatic situation. We discovered similar interests such as playing soccer and this showed me the importance of making a patient comfortable with you and the hospital

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