University
of Alabama at Birmingham; Master
of Science in Physician Assistant
Studies
Physician Assistants
(PAs) are valuable members of a multidisciplinary
healthcare team. The profession was
established in 1965 to help physicians
provide healthcare services to underserved
and rural populations. While the
profession remains committed to its
historical mission, PAs are now employed
in almost all medical and surgical
settings.
PAs are healthcare professionals licensed to practice medicine under the supervision
of a physician. Individual state laws and hospital bylaws define the scope
of practice and prescribing authority of physician assistants. In general,
most states authorize PAs to prescribe non-controlled substances and perform
any task delegated by a supervising physician. To be eligible for licensure,
PAs must graduate from an accredited physician assistant program and pass the
Physician Assistant National Certification Examination (PANCE).
The surgical physician assistant, functioning under the direction of the surgeon,
is expected to perform appropriately delegated tasks autonomously. Yet, the
surgical physician assistant will always remain under the guidance and counsel
of a surgeon.
Accreditation: The program is accredited by the Accreditation
Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant, Inc. (ARC-PA). Credentials
Conferred: Degree–The Master of Science in Physician Assistant
Studies (M.P.A.S.) degree is awarded by the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Professional
Certification: Graduates are eligible to apply for the certification
examination sponsored by the National Commission on Certification of Physician
Assistants. Length of Study: 27 months. Term of Enrollment: Fall
semester. Surgical Physician Assistant Program Mission: The mission
of the Surgical Physician Assistant Program at UAB is to train health care
professionals who are qualified to work as dependent professionals under physicians
and surgeons in patient care activities. Program Link: www.uab.edu/surgicalpa.
Program History
1967-1974: The Formative
Years; Program Director: Alan Dimick,
M.D. (1967-1969); Margaret K. Kirklin,
M.D. (1969-1974)
The Surgeon's
Assistant Program at the University
of Alabama at Birmingham was created
in 1967 by the nationally recognized
cardiac surgeon Dr. John W. Kirklin.
His motivation for establishing the
program developed while he was at
the Mayo Clinic and resident physicians
were operating a newly developed
pump oxygenator. Dr. Kirklin reasoned
that non-physicians with the appropriate
aptitude and training could be utilized
instead of resident physicians to
operate the complicated device. Additionally,
Dr. Kirklin observed that the training
of physicians was changing to the
degree that resident surgeons were
training for shorter periods of time.
Dr. Kirklin believed that the presence
of a trained assistant (i.e., surgeon's
assistant) would improve patient
care by allowing attending physicians
to delegate appropriate tasks and
help with the education of the resident
physicians. These factors led to
the creation of what is now known
as the UAB Surgical Physician Assistant
Program.
The UAB Surgical Physician
Assistant Program was initially established
as a Surgeon's Assistant program
under the administrative control
of the Department of Surgery. Graduates
were awarded a Certificate of Proficiency
upon completion of the two-year program.
In 1972, a formal relationship between
the Department of Surgery and the
School of Community and Allied Health
was established to allow qualified
students to earn a Bachelors of Science
degree. In 1971, legislation was
passed that allowed surgeons and
physician assistants to practice
in Alabama under the regulation of
the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners.
Dr. Alan Dimick served
as the first program director of
the Surgeon's Assistant Program
for a period of two years from 1967
to 1969. Dr. Margaret K. Kirklin
served as program director from 1969-1974.
In 1974, the program received its
initial accreditation by the Joint
Review Committee of the American
Medical Association Council on Medical
Education in collaboration with the
American College of Surgeons. Since
that time, the program has maintained
continuous accreditation
1974 to
1992: Building a Foundation;
Program Director: Henry L. Laws,
M.D. (1974-1982); J. Garber Galbraith,
M.D. (1982-1984); Joaquin S.
Aldrete (1984-1996); Associate
Director: Jacqueline Hall, SA
(1974-1992)
Jacqueline Hall,
a 1969 graduate, served as the associate
director of the program from 1974
to 1992. Under Mrs. Hall's
leadership, the program established
a national reputation of excellence
for the training of surgeon's
assistants. The surgeon employers
were plentiful and UAB graduates
were taking positions throughout
the country. Competition for admission
to the program was intense with over
300 applicants for 15 slots. Program
graduates were allowed to sit for
the Physician Assistant National
Certifying Examination (PANCE) beginning
in 1982. In 1991, the administrative
control of the program was transferred
from the Department of Surgery to
the School of Health Related Professions,
formerly known as the School of Community
and Allied Health. This period of
time marked an explosion within the
physician assistant profession as
a whole and for the subspecialty
practice of surgeon's assistants
in particular.
1992-1997:
Modernization; Program Director:
Joaquin S. Aldrete, M.D. (1984-1996);
Associate Director: Craig Cilimberg,
PA-C (1992-1996); Program Director:
Craig Cilimberg, PA-C (1996-1997);
Medical Director: Joaquin S.
Aldrete, M.D. (1996-1999)
Following Ms.
Hall's retirement in 1992,
Craig Cilimberg, PA-C, was named
associate director. Prior to being
chosen as associate director Mr.
Cilimberg, a 1982 graduate of the
program, worked for Dr. Kirklin as
his surgeon's assistant. Mr.
Cilimberg strengthened the program's
didactic curriculum and diversified
the clinical curriculum. These modifications
provided graduates with greater knowledge
of primary care medicine, without
sacrificing the superior technical
skills expected of UAB graduates.
These actions had an immediate impact
on the quality of the program and
its success on the PANCE examination.
In less than 5 years, the program's
pass rate improved from less than
50% in 1992 to over 90% in 1996.
From 1996 through 2000 the program
achieved pass rates greater than
90%. In 1996, the Standards and Guidelines
for an Accredited Educational Program
for the Physician Assistant were
revised, essentially merging the
accreditation standards for both
physician assistant and surgeon's
assistant programs. At about the
same time, the program changed its
name to the Surgical Physician Assistant
Program to clearly distinguish UAB
graduates as formally trained physician
assistants, and not surgical technicians.
In another administrative change,
Craig Cilimberg was named program
director and Dr. Joaquin Aldrete
was named medical director.
1998- 2003: Growth;
Program Director: Joe K. Gerald,
M.D. (1997-2002); Medical Director:
Joaquin S. Aldrete, M.D. (1996-1999);
John Gleysteen, M.D. (1999-present)
Joe K. Gerald,
M.D. was named program director following
Craig Cilimberg's return to
full-time clinical practice in 1997.
Dr. Gerald served as associate director
prior to being named program director.
Under Dr. Gerald's leadership,
the program added 3.75 FTE faculty,
strengthened its didactic curriculum,
and continued to diversify its clinical
curriculum. Between 1996 and 2001,
the program maintained a PANCE pass
rate greater than 90% and established
its highest ever pass rate of 96%
in 1998.
2003-Present
Doris Rapp, Pharm.
D., PA-C was named program director
in July 2003. In June 2005, the SPA
Program became a Master's level
entry program and the first class
of Masters students to the new program
entered in fall 2005. In January
2006, Herbert Ridings MA, PA-C replaced
Doris Rapp as program director. John
Baddley M.D. was also appointed Associate
Medical Director in an effort to
improve the internal medicine component
of the program. |
