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Summer 2010The VAPA NewsletterInsightMe, Network? Secrets to Finding a Great Jobby Charlotte M. Lemmert, MPAS, PA-CDuring my family medicine rotation, my PA preceptorsuggested I attend a VAPA dinner because she thought itwould be helpful to network with other PAs. I rememberthinking, “Networking? Um. I’m still a student. Isn’tnetworking just for business and marketing peopleanyway?” Au contraire! Attending medical society meetingsearly on as a PA student or even as a seasoned PA, affordsone the opportunity to meet and speak with practicing PAs,giving you contacts, knowledge of different specialties, anunderstanding of nuances specific to your area, and not tomention a much needed breather-- this is networking at itsfinest.PAs require a sponsoring physician to legally practicemedicine and while this is part of our professional culture,unfortunately, many of our physician colleagues remainunaware of PA training, expertise, and capability, so majorissues can arise in determining scope of practice. If a newgraduate (or PA changing specialties) is applying for aposition and is unsure of what is “normal” for a PA to doin that particular role, it is vital to speak with other PAswho do. The VAPA meetings are perfect opportunities toshare concerns, ask questions, and seek counsel from PAcolleagues. Yes, this may sound completely obvious orslightly paranoid, but PAs have an obligation to ourselves,our colleagues, & our community to continually shape ourprofessional identity, and to practice medicine as we aretrained to and are capable of.Discussing minor or major job related concerns with PAcolleagues may seem silly, but being miserable in a job isn’t.Speaking with fellow PAs at a VAPA meeting can hopefullyhelp one avoid a potentially bad employment situation, IE:when the new orthopods don’t want to train a newly hiredortho PA, she becomes completely overwhelmed with 8-16h days, 5 days week, long hours with complex cases andlittle support. Her supervising physicians change daily &several of them are quite unfriendly. They “pimp” her as4though she is a student and give her nightly homeworkassignments. She is on call every 3rd night, is exhaustedand has been getting sick multiple times during the year.Ultimately she quits, feeling totally burnout. If she hadanother seasoned orthopedic PA to help mentor her, shecould have been worked this situation out or had thegumption to leave!Experienced PA colleagues know red-flags that occurduring the interview process and can give suggestionsabout addressing these issues in an employment agreementto make sure PAs are treated appropriately. They can keepthe following from happening: a new PA without previousPA experience is hired as a 3 d/ week dermatology PA whoscribes for the MD for 6 months before being allowed tosee patients. She is underpaid by 15k for her geographicalarea based on the AAPA 2009 survey, has limited vacationtime, no CME money, and after finally being allowed to seepatients, is not given access to her revenue.The point of sharing these two examples isn’t to dramatizethese situations but rather stress the valuable networking& support resources PA students (and current PAs) havereadily available at the VAPA meetings. Plus, PAs areknown for being honest-if an area provider is not knownto treat staff well, you will be warned. Additionally, everypracticing PAs should be provided with a competitive salaryand good benefits. Experienced PAs can give you tips onhow to ask for and get compensated fairly.Finding a job isn’t difficult, but landing a great one can be.Help yourself find the best job possible by networking-it isjust as easy as saying hello and stating where you practiceor go to school. By taking advantage of the free monthlyVAPA meetings, students, new and veteran PAs alike canmeet and mingle, carving time out of hectic schedules tounite as a professional entity, in support of the profession,each other and ourselves.

Summer 2010The VAPA NewsletterInsightVAPA ElectionsCongratulations are in order for the new Board of Directorsfor VAPA. Polly Porter has taken over the mantle fromPortia Tomlinson (who now moves to Past President).Ken Anderson is our new Vice President/President Electand will take over VAPA as of summer 2011 at the annualmeeting in Virginia Beach. Jen Hedden was re-elected asTreasurer (the secret is that she has done such an incrediblejob, no one ran against her!). Kathy Scarbalis was reelected as Secretary. Rachel Carlson will return as the ChiefDelegate to the AAPA HOD. The 2 Directors-at-large willbe Reggie Lewis (moved to VA and immediately was putto work!) and Joe Howell (in a repeat performance!) JuliePodell of Jefferson College of Health Professions will bethe student representative. We welcome them all and wishthem luck. If you are interested in running for a boardposition in 2011, contact any of the VAPA board who will beglad to help!At the final meeting of the present VAPA BOD, specialmention and thanks were offered to Dave Falkensteinfor his years of service to Virginia. Dave has been oneof those people who work behind the scenes but if youpractice in VA, you owe Dave a note of thanks! He hasworked tirelessly to promote PAs, update PA laws, start aPA Advisory Board at the board of medicine, allow PAs tosee Virginia Medicaid patients and sign school physicals,sign other legal documents and even write prescriptions.For those of us who practiced in VA in the early 80s (andwe all know who we are), the VA environment was notparticularly welcoming to PAs. We were not really treatedas 2nd class citizens but more as unwanted encroachers.It is because of PAs like Dave that VA now has over 4,000practicing PAs and 4 PA schools. Thank you Dave. MSV Resolution October 200909-108 – PROMOTING HEALTH CARE TEAM APPROACH BYOFFERING MSV MEMBERSHIP TO PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTSSUPERVISED BY MSV PHYSICIANSRESOLVED, that the Medical Society of Virginia Board of Directorsstudy the development of an affiliate membership category forphysician assistants supervised by physicians in the Commonwealth ofVirginia, and be it furtherRESOLVED, that the MSV’s Board of Directors report the result of suchstudy in the form of a resolution at the House of Delegates, AnnualMeeting 2010, and be it furtherRESOLVED, that if such affiliate membership for physician assistantsis recommended by MSV’s Board of Directors, then the appropriatebylaws changes also be presented to our House of Delegates so thischange can be expeditiously effected, and be it furtherRESOLVED, that the Medical Society of Virginia explore opportunitiesto join with physician assistants to promote health care system reformto ensure access to quality, affordable and cost efficient health care forall residents of the Commonwealth of Virginia.JCHS at AAPAAnnual MeetingBetsy Kramen, class of 2011Jefferson College of Health Sciences (JCHS) inRoanoke, VA sent 8 first year students to attend theAAPA annual meeting held in Atlanta, GA in May. Asyou can see from their photo, they had a wonderfultime. They met practicing PAs and students from otherschools. They attended lectures and experiencedAtlanta! Some of the highlights for these studentsincluded the evening opening ceremonies at theGeorgia Aquarium, the Student Academy NationalMedical Challenge Bowl, along with some wonderfullectures. (Photo) As you can see, they even had timeto demonstrate that PAs visit Olympic Park.Student fundraising along with money donated bythe JCHS PA department made the conference moreaffordable for students to attend. While Atlanta waswonderful, JCHS is hoping to send a larger contingentto Vegas next year. Look for our Virginia PA students tomake a showing in the ‘City of Lights’. Adopted as Amended5

Summer 2010The VAPA NewsletterInsightShenandoah University Mission Trip AbroadNicole Morrison, PA-S, Shenandoah University, Class of 2011Summer of 2010 found Shenandoah University’s PA program in Leon, Nicaragua for the 5th year in a row. PA faculty andstudents, pharmacy and PT programs and physicians from the community all travel abroad for one week, with the hopeof learning, growing, and providing care to those in need. As we arrived in Nicaragua, the group of 45 split into 3 teams,each setting up a clinic in various rural locations. In just one short week, the teams provided over 84 hours of patient care,performed 130 cervical cancer screenings and saw almost 1300 patients. Most of the patients (from the very young to thevery old) had been without any form of health care for years and truly needed our help.Due to our hard work fundraising prior to the mission, we were able to distribute and donate over 70,000 worth ofmedication to the people of Nicaragua. In addition, a grant received from the PA Foundation allowed us to distribute 500aluminum water bottles. Water bottles often are needed to combat dehydration a serious issue facing this population.At the end of a VERY!! long week, the mission trip proved to be truly successful and fulfilling experience for all of us. Boththe students and providers not only learned more about their fields of medicine, they coalesced to a multidisciplinaryteam that worked together for the good of others. Our goals, to reach and provide care to hundreds in need, were met butwe found ourselves changed too. You cannot help but walk away from such an experience reignited with a passion formedicine and for service. Spotlight on Kim O’Brien at theNational Medical Children’s CenterGrowing up in a medical environment as a physician’sdaughter, Kim O’Brien always knew she was destined fora career in the industry. Although she traveled many pathsbefore arriving to her final destination as a physicianassistant at Children’s National, she believes that she isfinally where she belongs.O’Brien had a political career for more than 14 yearsbefore switching to the medical field. After tiring of politics,she decided on the career that shesays she was born to do.for more than four years andenjoys being able to contribute toimproving children’s healthcare.“I truly enjoy working with andtreating children more than adultmedicine. I love the team ofdedicated staff I work with everyday in the orthopedics department,”“As a teenager and college student Ialways worked in a hospital or medicaloffice during the summers.”“As a teenager and college studentI always worked in a hospital ormedical office during the summers,”she said. “I was familiar with thePhysician Assistant profession and knew that physicianassistants were going to play a major role in the future ofhealthcare.”O’Brien has worked in the Department of OrthopedicSurgery and Sports Medicine at Children’s National6-KIM O’BRIENsaid O’Brien. “But mostly I hope that I am contributing insome small way to improving healthcare for all the childrenin the DC metro area. It’s pretty rewarding to know that Iam playing a small part in improving their lives.” Thanks to Children’s Hospital for a spotlight on our Kim O’Brien

Summer 2010The VAPA NewsletterInsightEVMS Health Fair 2010Jennifer Weiss, PA-SEastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) PA students hosteda Children’s Health Fair for the 3rd straight year. Manyof you will remember VAPA’s award winning “Virginia isFor Helmets” program of encouraging exercise to decreasechildhood obesity by giving each child a helmet as a way todiscuss and encourage outside play. EVMS has taken thisprogram to all new heights!Dan Thibodeau, PA-C, professor at EVMS wanted to havestudents make a difference in their community. Piggybackingon AAPA’s health literacy and the VAPA “Virginia is forHelmets” programs, he started a health fair for children inthe Norfolk school district. The first one was in 2008 (usedby VAPA as part of their application for constituent awards)and the most recent one was in 2010. On April 17th, EVMShas hosted the 3rd annual Children’s Health Fair.EVMS PA students volunteered their time to educate andentertain children on various health topics.Elementary school students and their families from severalarea schools, including Chesterfield Academy, were invitedto the 2010 Children’s Health Fair for fun, education andplenty of giveaways including 180 children’s bike helmetsand 50 booster seats, a book for each child on health-relatedtopics, toothbrushes, floss, and toothpaste. Healthy food wasprovided for attendees (instead of the hot dogs and chipsusually available at kid events)—turkey and ham sandwiches,apple slices, raisins, tangerines, and water (no soda).Along with EVMS faculty, 50 PA students leddemonstrations for the kids in: Nutrition/food choices Hand washing Story time and heath literacy Drug awarenessAt left, bicycle safety was one ofthe many topics covered at theevent. PAs taught children howto properly wear a safety helmet.Above, this PA paints on a smile. Dangers of smoking (with real hearts and lungs)Bicycle safety (with real brains)Benefits of exercise (with a REAL obstacle course)Dental healthPoison controlFingerprinting and Child ID packetsEVMS wishes to thank their partners in health education:Chesterfield Academy staff, the VA CommonwealthAttorney’s office, NY Life, EVMS Art Therapy students,Norfolk Fire and Rescue and the Agape Counseling andTherapeutic Services. Without their help, making this a funand educational day for both the kids and their familieswould be impossible. See you in 2011! JHCS Community Outreach ProgramBetsy Kramen, Class of 2011Jefferson College of Health Sciences (JCHS) in Roanoke, VA students have been participating in community serviceduring the 2010 summer (along with carrying a heavy caseload, thank you very much!). A large group of studentshelped collect data for the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Prevention Study-3 (CPS-3) study. The CPS-3 isa long-term study attempting to identify environmental, genetic, and lifestyle factors that increase or decrease anindividual’s chance of cancer. Students worked by recruiting, checking eligibility, assisting with the written surveymaterials and measuring waists, all the while having a great time. Susannah White, a student in the class of 2011,stated, “It was great to be a part of something larger than all of us.”The first year class also continues to help cover a local homeless shelter in Roanoke. Students visit the shelter toeducate the patrons about a variety of medical conditions. As always, they learn as much from the clientele as theclientele learns from them. 7

Summer 2010The VAPA NewsletterInsightprogram highlightJames Madison University PA ProgramSarah Thomas, JMU MPAS 2011 & Sara Tranum, JMU MPAS 2010James Madison University (JMU) is a public university situated in the Shenandoah Valleycity of Harrisonburg, VA and attended by 18,500 students. JMU’s Master of PhysicianAssistant Studies Program (MPAS) is part of the College of Integrated Science andTechnology and has been accredited by the ARC-PA since April 1999. It is a 28 monthprogram including 16 months of classroom work followed by 12 months of clinicalrotations. The classroom portion contains courses in basic, behavioral and medicalsciences while the rotation period includes 4 or 8 week rotations in internal medicine,pediatrics, family medicine, behavioral medicine, OB/GYN, surgery, emergency med,1 elective and a written thesis paper.Class of 2011The first year class at JMU (Class of 2011) has 27students. We started in August 2009, bonding togetherand growing asa class over thelast year. We haveworked to serveour community andpromote PAs aspart of a health careteam though JMU’sPA Student Society(PASS), which is asub-group of AAPA’sStudent Society. Eachincoming first-yearclass elects officers toPASS, VAPA as wellas a HOD studentdelegate to representJMU at AAPA’s annual conference. We have spentthe first year participating in a number of communityactivities to raise money in order to send students toconferences, promote the PA profession, and raisehealth awareness.Currently, we have been getting involved with the localFarmer’s Market in Harrisonburg. We believe this isa great way to not only get out into the community,but to help at a local level. We have run BP screeningtables, distributed healthy food tips, run kids’ activities(face-painting), set-up and taken-down booths andparticipated in clothing and food drives. We are alsovolunteering with the “Gus Bus” a literacy program thattravels to neighborhood and community events to readto children. We donate books, read to the kids and assistwith their food drives.Class of 2010The JMU PA program class of 2010, graduatingDecember 18th, will be the 10th graduating class of theprogram. Starting with our class, JMU shifted the PAprogram start date from May to August and extendedthe program by four months. This provided an additionalsemester of didactic work and set the clinical year tobegin in January. Every three months we reconvene forour end-of-rotation exams, a few lectures and a little sparetime with friends who have scattered to the wind sincebeginning the clinical year. Our rotations have rangedfrom Harrisonburg to Northern Virginia and DC, fromEastern Kentucky to Petersburg, from large academicfacilities to single-provider private practices. We are justfinishing our 7th of the 11 rotation blocks and many of myclassmates are actively hunting for jobs! Many of us arestudent VAPA members who plan to continue to resideand practice in Virginia and can’t wait to be able to start2011 with a change from PA-S to PA-C! This is the first in a series of articles highlighting our fourVirginia PA schools. We would like to thank the JMU studentreps for their well-written notes.For further information regarding JMU PA Program, including our mission and a more detailed curriculum andschedule, refer the program website at: http://www.jmu.edu/healthsci/paweb/8

Summer 2010Fairfax CountySports PhysicalsThe budget crisis has hit far and wide in Virginia as it hasacross the United States. Fairfax County Public Schools cameup with an innovative and imaginative way to help raisefunds for high school sports. While much of the funds for theequipment are still supplied by Fairfax County, the ‘durablemedical equipment’ budget of the high schools was ‘zeroedout’. This is government-speak for “No Money Budgeted.”Without towels, tape, splints, bandages, gauze and such, thesports teams would be a hurting mess! The Fairfax Countyhigh schools decided to offer “Sports Physicals” at the highschool, staffed by volunteers and with a 40 charge to allkids involved in sports. These physicals were offered free toany child who qualified for a free or reduced cost lunch.But in order for these physicals to be an effective fundraiser,medical volunteers were needed. The northern Virginia PAshelped come to the rescue with 35 volunteers spread out overthe 26 area High Schools. We plan to help again in 2011.We’ll be looking for you next May and June as you reliveyour “Glory Days” by returning to high school with us! The VAPA NewsletterBack to SchoolPhysicals Offeredin A

Board and membership meetings were held July 26, 2009 at Virginia Beach, October 17, 2009 at Wintergreen Resort, April 17, 2010 at Leesburg, and a teleconference February 7, 2010 and April 6, 2010. Membership attendance is greatest at the annual membership meeting at our summer conference. Both summer CME conferences in July were