The Physician Assistant Essay and Personal Statement Collaborative

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1. Adam says

   May 25, 2020 at 2:06 am

   Thank you for the advice!

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   • Whitney Prosperi says

     May 28, 2020 at 10:55 am

     You’re very welcome!

     Reply

2. Adam says

   May 24, 2020 at 1:22 am

   It didn’t hit me until the drive home from my last day as a physical therapy (PT) intern. After a grueling semester, I should have felt liberated to finish the final capstone internship required for my degree. Instead, feelings of doubt, insecurity, and regret swirled around my head. Had I chosen the wrong professional path?

   Three years earlier I enrolled in the Kinesiology program at Arizona State University. After suffering a pectoral tear the following summer, I was referred to a PT clinic to rehabilitate my injury. Within months I had gone from hanging my arm in a sling to slowly beginning pushups again. I had a rooted desire to help people heal the same way my therapist had helped me. Every semester that passed only strengthened and re-affirmed this more. As my GPA progressively increased, so did my confidence. Despite working full-time, I began to challenge myself even more; attempting to shorten the time remaining until I had a career that I loved. In addition to steadily increasing my course load each semester, I began to seek extracurricular activities like participating in research labs or enrolling in graduate level courses with university approval.

   During the final week of my internship, I witnessed an interaction between a therapist and a patient named Jim that I had grown close with while working there. After stating he wished more could have been done about the numbness in his fingertips, the therapist explained that this was a neurological issue and there was nothing more they could do for him. Unknowingly, this experience planted a seed in my head that slowly began to sprout. Now that I had completed my bachelor’s program, it was time to begin the application process for doctorate of physical therapy programs. The flames of motivation that had lit the fire underneath me for the last three years began to slowly dwindle. After searching for an explanation of my new-found flat affect, the answer came from a place I’d least expect it.

   Upon opening my email, there was a message from my internship director. Attached was the final piece of the puzzle; my internship evaluation. She had given me the highest possible marks, stating that one day I would be an outstanding therapist myself. After writing back to explain my recent skepticism surrounding my choice of career, she gave me the most helpful piece of professional advice I had ever received. Her reply wrote “The hardest part isn’t wanting to help people. The hardest part is figuring out how.” She suggested that I look into PA as a possible alternative, calling them “Swiss-army knives of medicine”. That message had given me more emotional clarity and clairvoyance than I had felt in weeks. They say that knowledge is power, and I knew in that moment I wanted more power to help patients like Jim. The more I learned about becoming a PA, the more I began realizing that those feelings of doubt, insecurity, and regret were actually just an unidentified longing to do more.

   PA programs have much more rigorous requirements than the degree I had already obtained. Microbiology, Organic Chemistry, and Biochemistry were just a few of the courses I would need to complete before applying to any programs. The idea of becoming a PA felt so promising, but I needed to know for sure before sacrificing the next couple years completing the required coursework. To confirm this newly kindled motivation, I turned to medical scribing. To gain exposure to a wide variety of medicine, I picked an environment that would allow me to see them all; the emergency department. Working alongside a healthcare provider was so much more enlightening than attending therapy as a patient. During my first solo shift, my provider picked up a patient complaining of abdominal pain.

   As we entered the room, it was apparent the patient was homeless. He was stranded in Phoenix with no food, shelter, or money to get home. As we walked out of the room, the patient asked for something to eat. After placing orders for lab work and imaging of the patient’s abdomen, the PA requested that the nursing staff bring the patient a blanket, juice, and some crackers with his medication. While the patient rested, my provider spoke with the social worker on shift to arrange getting him a bus ticket home.

   When it was time to discharge the patient, he couldn’t help but break into tears as the provider handed him his bus ticket. In that exact moment, I could see all of the elements that healthcare encompasses coming together. A compilation of empathy, compassion, wisdom, and experience, patient treatment requires a dynamic approach tailored to each individual and their specific needs. After working in the third busiest ER in the state of Arizona, I am now ready to obtain the tools I need to provide any patient with a level of care that I know I am capable of providing. I am ready to become a Swiss-army knife.

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   • Whitney Prosperi says

     May 24, 2020 at 8:41 pm

     Adam,

     I think you do a good job of showing your motivation to become a PA.

     Your story of deciding to pursue the PA path is compelling. I do think you will need to condense where you can to leave some space to add in a description of any shadowing experience you may have had. Describe interactions between PA and patients and PA and physician. What about your observations confirmed your decision?
     Also, I would add a brief patient care story. Show yourself in action providing some kind of care while connecting with a patient on a personal level.
     You may also want to mention your desire for and ability to collaborate with a team of providers.
     The story about the homeless patient and PA is very compelling!
     You are off to a good start. Good luck to you!

     Reply

3. Liz says

   May 23, 2020 at 10:57 pm

   Thank you so very much!!!

   The wind blew lightly, as the sun shone bright. Blossoms filled the spring trees and birds sang from their branches. Outside, the world lies in a stage of rebirth, while in the familiarity of my parent’s bedroom tears fall. My father lay silent. Hand in hand with him, I watched his chest fall as he took his final breath. My dad, who I absolutely idolized, had succumbed to the cancer that he so valiantly fought against.

   Losing my father to cancer was a life-altering experience that helped renew my desire to become a physician assistant. This may sound strange, but I feel my father urging me forward on this path. He is my inspiration and my motivation. My dad’s cancer journey was filled with many medical professionals. However, one stands out in my mind. Dad’s physician assistant was the first provider who suspected cancer. She conferred with the doctor she worked under and he agreed. Dad’s physician assistant used her influence to fast-track an appointment with a specialist so the cancer could be diagnosed quickly, and appropriately.

   The additional time and concern she was able to take with my dad certainly added years to his prognosis. I want to be a physician assistant so I can help sustain the lives of others. I want to provide services for those who suffer, who need medical guidance and assistance, who need a caring, sensitive provider. I want to be a physician assistant so I can follow through with patients, and practice preventative medicine and critical care.

   I want to be a physician assistant so I can provide the level of care that was given to my dad. I want to take time and consideration with each patient I have the blessing to know. I look forward to being the provider who can offer a shoulder to cry on when needed, and a positive environment of respect, empathy and dignity. I saw how vital that type of care was to my dad in his cancer journey and I long to supply that comfort and support to others in a way I can do in a greater capacity, with the PA-C behind my name.

   One way I’m working on becoming this type of provider is In my current work as a full-time patient care technician (PCT). At work, my home base is Labor, Delivery and Newborn care, but I also work in the ER, and the medical/surgical in-patient floor. I work with medical professionals of every level and the ideal practitioner, in my opinion, is the physician assistant. I love the level of interaction they have with their patients. In my estimation, physician assistants have more one-to-one time with their patients.

   Personal interaction with patients is what I love most about my job. As a PCT I intimately interact with people as I take vital signs, perform baby lab draws, provide peri care for adult patients, administer catheter care, and spend time visiting with each of my patients. I regret that once my patients discharge I lose contact with them. I will never know if the baby we transferred to NICU is doing well. If the patient who left after the surgical repair of a complicated fracture will ever ski again. I want to be a physician assistant so I can provide a continuum of care, and be present in the lives of my patients for years to come. I know I can do this as a physician assistant, I witnessed it first hand in my shadow hours.

   My experience shadowing Wes Webster, a family practice physician assistant, was invaluable. Wes is a great example of providing lifetime care for his patients. Before we would enter a patient’s room, Wes would turn to me and share something like the following, “You are going to love Jim. He is a great guy who loves riding horses.” Wes never rushed the patient. He always asked about their loved ones, and inquired about the patient’s interests. When it came to treatment, Wes caringly listened and offered suggestions, always allowing the patient to decide on their plan of care. I observed that Wes is both a caregiver and a friend. I want to be a physician assistant so I can provide the same level of care and compassion I witnessed by shadowing Wes, and to provide a continuum of care, and to give the talents I have to people who are in their most vulnerable state. I cannot wait to be a physician assistant

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   • Whitney Prosperi says

     May 24, 2020 at 8:27 pm

     Liz,
     I am sorry about the loss of your father.
     I trust that you will honor his legacy as you provide compassionate care to your own patients.

     I think you do a wonderful job of showing your motivation to become a PA. You also reveal the PA who was the catalyst for your decision.

     I would describe a patient care experience you have had. Show yourself providing care of some kind while connecting with the patient on a personal level. Here, you want to show what traits you have that will make you a compassionate, effective provider.

     I would also mention your desire to collaborate with a healthcare team somewhere in your essay.

     Also, for your conclusion, I would tie back in some way to the incredible story about your father and his legacy propelling your forward.

     I wish you luck on your journey!

     Reply