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Single Edit One-on-one Service Supplemental Essays
Your success is our passion. (See just some of our 100's of testimonials and comments below). We are ready to help. Our current PA school essay editing service status (1st May 2024): Accepting New Submissions
(Photo: Me circa 1987, just thinking about my future PA School Essay)
- Are you struggling to write your physician assistant personal statement?
- Are you out of ideas, or just need a second opinion?
- Do you want an essay that expresses who you truly are and grabs the reader's attention in the required 5,000-character limit?
We are here to help perfect your PA school essay
I have written countless times on this blog about the importance of your personal statement in the PA school application process. Beyond the well-established metrics (GPA, HCE/PCE hours, requisite coursework, etc.), the personal statement is the most crucial aspect of your application.
This is your time to express yourself, show your creativity, skills, and background, and make a memorable impression in seconds. This will be your only chance, so you must get it right the first time.
For some time, I had been dreaming about starting a physician assistant personal statement collaborative.
A place where PA school applicants like yourself can post their PA school essays and receive honest, constructive feedback followed by an acceptance letter to the PA school of your choice!
I have been reviewing a ton of essays recently, so many in fact that I can no longer do this on my own.
To solve this problem, I have assembled a team of professional writers, editors, and PA school admissions specialists who worked to revise and perfect my PA school application essay.
Beth Eakman has taught college writing and worked as a professional writer and editor since the late 1990s. Her projects have involved a wide range of disciplines and media, from editing technical reports to scriptwriting for the PBS Kids show Super Why! Her writing has appeared in publications including Brain, Child Magazine, New York Family Magazine, and Austin Family Magazine. Beth lives with her family just outside Austin, Texas. She is driven to help each client tell the best version of their story and achieve their dream of becoming a physician assistant.
Deanna Matzen is an author with articles featured in Earth Letter, Health Beats, Northwest Science & Technology, and the Transactions of the American Fisheries Society. With an early career in environmental science, she developed a solid foundation in technical writing. Her communication skills were further honed by producing and editing content for a non-profit website, blog, and quarterly journal. Inspired to extend her craft, she obtained a certificate in literary fiction, which she draws on to build vibrant scenes that bring stories to life. Deanna loves working with pre-PAs who are on the cusp of new beginnings to find their unique story and tell it confidently.
Carly Hallman is a professional writer and editor with a B.A. in English Writing and Rhetoric (summa cum laude) from St. Edward's University in Austin, Texas. She has worked as a curriculum developer, English teacher, and study abroad coordinator in Beijing, China, where she moved in 2011. In college, she was a Gilman Scholar and worked as a staff editor for her university's academic journal. Her first novel, Year of the Goose, was published in 2015, and her first memoir is forthcoming from Little A Books. Her essays and creative writing have appeared in The L.A. Review of Books, The Guardian, LitHub, and Identity Theory, among other publications.
Read more client testimonials or purchase a revision
We Work as a Team
Our team of professional editors is wonderful at cutting out the "fluff" that makes an essay lose focus and sets people over the 5,000-character limit. Their advice is always spot-on.
Sue, Sarah, and Carly are amazingly creative writers who will take your "ordinary" and turn it into entirely extraordinary.
I mean it when I say this service is one-of-a-kind! We have spent countless hours interviewing PA School admissions directors and faculty from across the country to find out exactly what it is they are looking for in your personal statement.
We even wrote a book about it.
To collaborate, we use Google Drive. Google Drive is free, has an intuitive interface with integrated live comments in the sidebar, the ability to have a real-time chat, to collaborate effortlessly, and to compare, revise, or restore revisions on the fly. Google Drive also has an excellent mobile app that will allow you to make edits on the go!
Our team has worked with hundreds of PA school applicants within the Google Drive environment, and we have had enormous success.
The Physician Assistant Essay and Personal Statement Collaborative
I have set up two options that I hope will offer everyone a chance to participate:
- One-of-a-kind, confidential, paid personal statement review service
- A collaborative, free one (in the comments section)
Private, One-On-One Personal Statement Review Service
If you are interested in the paid service, you may choose your plan below.
The Personal Statement Review Service is:
- Behind closed doors within a private, secure network using Google Drive.
- It is completely interactive, meaning we will be able to provide real-time comments and corrections using the Google Drive interface.
- Telephone consultations are included with all edits above the single edit level. It’s often hard to communicate exactly what you want hundreds of miles away; for this reason, we offer the option to edit right along with us over the telephone while sharing in real-time over Google Drive. This is an option available to all our paid clients who purchase above the single edit level.
- We provide both revision and editing of all essays. What’s the difference? See below
- We will provide feedback, advice, and help with brainstorming and topic creation if you would like.
- We will help with a “final touch-up” before the big day, just in case your essay needs a few minor changes.
Why Choose Our Service?
- It’s not our opinion that matters. We have gone the extra step and personally interviewed PA school administrators from across the US to find out exactly what they think makes a personal statement exceptional.
- We are a team of PAs and professional writers, having worked over ten years with PA school applicants like yourself, providing countless hours of one-on-one editing and revision.
- Our clients receive interviews, and many go on to receive acceptance into their PA School of choice.
Because we always give 100%, we will open the essay collaborative for a limited number of applicants each month and then close this depending on the amount of editing that needs to be done and the time that is available.
Our goal is not quantity but quality. We want only serious applicants who are serious about getting into PA school.
Writing is not a tool like a piece of software but more like how a photograph can capture your mood. It’s more like art. The process of developing a unique, memorable personal statement is time-intensive, and it takes hours to compose, edit, finalize, and personalize an essay.
As Antoinette Bosco once said:
And this is why I am charging for this service. We love helping people find stories that define their lives, and we love helping individuals who have the passion to achieve their dreams. It’s hard to describe the feeling I get when an applicant writes back to tell me they were accepted into PA school.
There is no price tag I can place on this; it’s the feeling we get when we help another human being. It’s just like providing health care. But this takes time.
Interested? Choose your plan below.
Read more client testimonials.
Free Personal Statement Review
Post your essay in the comments section for a free critique
We want to make this opportunity available to everyone who would like help with their essay, and that is why we are offering free, limited feedback on the blog.
You post your essay in the comments section, and you will get our critique. It is that easy. We will try to give feedback to every single person who posts their COMPLETE essay here on this blog post in the comments section.
Also, by posting your comment, we reserve the right to use your essay.
We will provide feedback on essays that are complete and fit the CASPA requirements (View CASPA requirements here). We will not provide feedback on partial essays or review opening or closing statements. Your essay will be on a public platform, which has both its benefits and some obvious drawbacks. The feedback is limited, but we will try to help in any way we can.
Note: Comment Rules: Remember what Fonzie was like? Cool. That’s how we’re gonna be — cool. Critical is fine, but if you’re rude, I will delete your stuff. Otherwise, have fun, and thanks for adding to the conversation! And this should go without saying: if you feel the need to plagiarize someone else’s content, you do not deserve to go to PA school.
* Also, depending on the time of year, it may take me several weeks to reply!
We love working with PA school applicants, but don't just take our word for it!
How to submit your essay for the paid service
If you are serious and would like to have real, focused, and personalized help writing your personal statement, please choose your level of service and submit your payment below.
After you have submitted your payment, you will be redirected to the submissions page, where you can send us your essay as well as any special instructions. We will contact you immediately upon receipt of your payment and essay so we may begin work right away.
Pricing is as follows:
Choose your plan, then click "Buy Now" to submit your essay, and we will get started right away!
Every purchase includes a FREE digital copy of our new 100-page eBook, How to Write Your Physician Assistant Personal Statement, Our 101 PA School Admission Essays e-book, the expert panel audiobook, and companion workbook. This is a $65 value included for free with your purchase.
All credit card payments are processed via PayPal over a secure HTTPS server. Once your payment is processed, you will be immediately redirected back to the essay submission page. There, you will submit your essay along with some biographical info and all suggestions or comments you choose to provide. You will receive immediate confirmation that your essay has been securely transmitted as well as your personal copy of "How to Write Your Physician Assistant Personal Statement." Contact [email protected] if you have any questions, comments, or problems - I am available 24/7.
The hourly service includes your original edit and one-on-one time over Google Drive. It is simple to add more time if necessary, but you may be surprised at what a difference just a single edit can make. We find our four-hour service to be the most effective in terms of time for follow-up and full collaboration. We are open to reduced-rate add-ons to suit your individual needs.
Writing and Revision
All writing benefits from rewriting when done well.
When you are in the process of writing a draft of an essay, you should be thinking first about revision, not editing.
What’s the difference?
Revision refers to the substantial changing of text. For example, it may include re-organizing ideas and paragraphs, providing additional examples or information, and rewriting a conclusion for clarity.
Editing, on the other hand, refers to correcting mistakes in spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
On all submissions, we perform both revision and editing.
How to submit your PA school essay for the FREE editing service
Follow the rules above and get to work below in the comments section. I look forward to reading all your essay submissions.
- Stephen Pasquini PA-C
View all posts in this series
- How to Write the Perfect Physician Assistant School Application Essay
- The Physician Assistant Essay and Personal Statement Collaborative
- Do You Recognize These 7 Common Mistakes in Your Personal Statement?
- 7 Essays in 7 Days: PA Personal Statement Workshop: Essay 1, “A PA Changed My Life”
- PA Personal Statement Workshop: Essay 2, “I Want to Move Towards the Forefront of Patient Care”
- PA Personal Statement Workshop: Essay 3, “She Smiled, Said “Gracias!” and Gave me a Big Hug”
- PA Personal Statement Workshop: Essay 4, “I Have Gained so Much Experience by Working With Patients”
- PA Personal Statement Workshop: Essay 5, “Then Reach, my Son, and Lift Your People up With You”
- PA Personal Statement Workshop: Essay 6, “That First Day in Surgery was the First Day of the Rest of my Life”
- PA Personal Statement Workshop: Essay 7, “I Want to Take People From Dying to Living, I Want to Get Them Down From the Cliff.”
- Physician Assistant Personal Statement Workshop: “To say I was an accident-prone child is an understatement”
- 9 Simple Steps to Avoid Silly Spelling and Grammar Goofs in Your PA School Personel Statement
- 5 Tips to Get you Started on Your Personal Essay (and why you should do it now)
- How to Write Your Physician Assistant Personal Statement The Book!
- How to Write “Physician Assistant” The Definitive PA Grammar Guide
- 101 PA School Admissions Essays: The Book!
- 5 Things I’ve Learned Going Into My Fourth Physician Assistant Application Cycle
- 7 Tips for Addressing Shortcomings in Your PA School Personal Statement
- The #1 Mistake PRE-PAs Make on Their Personal Statement
- The Ultimate PA School Personal Statement Starter Kit
- The Ultimate Guide to CASPA Character and Space Limits
- 10 Questions Every PA School Personal Statement Must Answer
- 5 PA School Essays That Got These Pre-PAs Accepted Into PA School
- 7 Questions to Ask Yourself While Writing Your PA School Personal Statement
- 101 PA School Applicants Answer: What’s Your Greatest Strength?
- 12 Secrets to Writing an Irresistible PA School Personal Statement
- 7 Rules You Must Follow While Writing Your PA School Essay
- You Have 625 Words and 2.5 Minutes to Get Into PA School: Use Them Wisely
- What’s Your #1 Personal Statement Struggle?
- 31 (NEW) CASPA PA School Personal Statement Examples
- How to Prepare for Your PA School Interview Day Essay
- Should You Write Physician Associate or Physician Assistant on Your PA School Essay?
- Meet the World’s Sexiest PA School Applicants
- PA School Reapplicants: How to Rewrite Your PA School Essay for Guaranteed Success
- How to Write a Personal Statement Intro that Readers Want to Read
- PA School Reapplicant Personal Statement Checklist
- How to Deal with Bad News in Your Personal Statement
- Inside Out: How to use Pixar’s Rules of Storytelling to Improve your PA Personal Statement
- Ratatouille: A Pixar Recipe for PA School Personal Statement Success
- Personal Statement Panel Review (Replay)
- Mind Mapping: A Tool for Personal Statements, Supplemental Essays, and Interviews
- Start at the End: Advice for your PA School Personal Statement
Lauren says
For a choreographed piece of ballet to reach its highest potential, a combination of teamwork and dedication is key, much like in the practice of medicine. I can still vividly feel my burning muscles and aching toes in my pointe shoes as I performed. I practiced an eight-minute piece for months to prepare for a performance; however, all of the exhausting preparation melted away as I soared across the stage. The parallel is evident between the reward of a performance after extensive rehearsals and the reward of caring for a patient following years of study and preparation. Experiencing a patient’s healing is far worth the time and work of preparing to be a physician assistant (PA). My own experiences as a patient initially sparked my interest in the medical field, but my time spent at CURE International’s hospital in Zambia, Athens Associates in Family Practice, and the Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University have cultivated my desire to provide healing for people in the midst of uncertainty and fear.
On the night of the Fourth of July in 2001, following a smoky evening of fireworks, I awoke gasping for oxygen. Like a fish out of water, I stumbled into my parents’ room to get help as I suffered another asthma attack. A frightening trip to the emergency room eventually led me to forgo my then dream to dance as a prima ballerina for a new dream: a career in medicine. While meeting with my allergist following my asthma attack, Dr. Cohen opened my eyes to my potential future in patient care. He demonstrated how I could help others to overcome chronic illnesses such as my asthma and allergies; from that point on, I was hooked. I would one day treat patients of my own.
Years later, as I stood outside of the children’s ward at the CURE International Hospital in Zambia, a local mother approached me. “My daughter has crooked legs just like his,” pointing to a young patient undergoing surgery for bowed legs the next morning. She asked, “Can you fix her legs?” while studying me with an expectant and hopeful gaze. My heart swelled as I led this mother and her seven-year-old daughter to the orthopedic surgeon; he would make the daughter’s dream of walking to school with friends possible. She was the same age that I was when I sat in Dr. Cohen’s office and fell in love with medicine and the avenues it creates to care for others. Experiencing the compassion of the CURE Hospital’s medical team as they operated on her legs and led her through recovery was incredible, but nothing compared to watching my new friend take her first steps on straight legs. Her face beamed with pride and her gratitude seemed to shine from the depths of her soul. The investment of her medical team will forever remind me of the priceless opportunity it is to share in these transformative moments.
I met Alice during my senior year of college working as a medical assistant at Athens Associates in Family Practice. Alice spoke broken English, had a violent case of the flu, and was deeply frightened by medical treatment. Watching Leigh, the PA conducting Alice’s appointment, patiently collect medical history needed for diagnosis and skillfully educate Alice, despite language barriers, spoke volumes of her role as a PA. Leigh displayed her professional knowledge and skill, but she balanced professionalism with warm reassurance to calm Alice’s fears. Despite the great deal of time that Alice required during a busy clinical day, Leigh never rushed Alice. I deeply admired Leigh’s commitment to complete care for her patient.
The opportunity to bond with patients in a time of vulnerability and need, work in partnership with other medical professionals that share my passions, and study the fascinating human body each compel me to choose the path of a physician assistant. However, my greatest intrigue with the profession is the chance to instill hope in my patients. While interning with the Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University this summer, I have seen how hope fuels a patient to fight their disease, believe that they will be healed, and dream for life beyond treatments and hospital visits. Winship celebrated completing 5,000 bone marrow transplants at the beginning of this summer. Experiencing the relationships between former transplant patients and physician assistants was deeply moving. The celebration of life made possible by treatment at the Winship Cancer Institute perfectly exhibited the hope instilled in their patients now embracing a cancer-free life.
Through each of these experiences, I have discovered my potential for impacting the medical world. As a physician assistant, I will ease my patient’s suffering. I will instill hope in them to overcome their disease or injury. I will equip them to live healthily. I will act as the bridge between medical knowledge and personalized healing for each unique individual. The bond created through compassionate healing is powerful, and I am eager to join the community of physician assistants in healing.
Jayme says
My medical path began with fear: the fear of being in crowded spaces or public spaces where is it difficult to escape causing extreme episodes of anxiety, agoraphobia. During my junior year of high school, I took my first college class, Psychology. In this class we were assigned a Psychological disorder to present and I was given agoraphobia. After the presentations, I became more interested in understanding people and personality. After finishing this class, my desire to learn more led me to volunteer in the activities department of a mental health facility. There were a variety of patients who were no longer able to live in mainstream society due to their psychological condition. Engaging with these patients helped me to gain knowledge of their conditions and also acquire compassion for their situation. My volunteering continued throughout college. I had the opportunity to facilitate group therapy sessions for underprivileged children with psychological and developmental disorders. Most of the children had problems communicating their feelings, which resulted in aggressive behavior or isolating themselves. While helping the children develop the ability to express themselves and interact with others appropriately and overall better manage their disorders, it allowed me to become even more patient and understanding toward others.
During my undergraduate education, I began to recognize a connection between mental health and physical health, so I decided to take more biology classes. I also began to volunteer in a couple of hospitals where I was able to help physically ill patients’ stay comfortable. In addition to this experience, many of the women in my family are nurses. Being around nurses all my life and working with them has shown me their diligent work ethic and their compassion for the patients’ overall well being. All of these factors influenced my decision to work in healthcare.
After receiving my degree in Psychology, I was accepted into a pre-health program in San Francisco where I was able to strengthen my science foundation and also have more access to the healthcare world. However, due to minimal financial aid, I had to work two jobs while going to school. I have been working multiple jobs since I was eighteen, so working hard is my normal routine. During my second semester I also decided to volunteer with an HIV research study in the Emergency Room at San Francisco General Hospital. I enjoyed this experience because I was able to get acquainted with the healthcare staff, become familiar with an Emergency Room and help patients gain knowledge regarding their HIV status using surveys and blood tests. This experience was an excellent learning and personal growth opportunity. However, moving away was a challenge. In addition, financial aid was taken away from those in the program, so I moved home and finished my remaining classes there. During my academic career, I have gone through a few obstacles and financial humps. However, the difficult situations that I have faced have encouraged me to strengthen my problem solving skills. My passion to help others physically and mentally keeps me motivated to accomplish my goal of working in healthcare.
Next I enjoyed working in home health. Working with nurses in order to monitor and assess patient’s health while providing them with necessary resources has not only given me direct patient care experience but also solidified my desire to help patients. Currently, I work as a Certified Nursing Assistant/Mental Health Worker in a hospital. There, I have gained additional experience working with a range of patients making sure they are safe on there way to better health. Still, I want to take a path aside from nursing and also take a more leading role in medicine. I want to be able to diagnose and help develop treatment plans while having the opportunity to collaborate with a physician in order to provide the best service. After hearing great things from nurses about their experiences working with Physician Assistants I was able to shadow various medical professionals. Overall, the excellent patient care I have witnessed provided by PAs includes: giving so much time, compassion, by being great listeners, and communicators, even for the most difficult patients. I was also given the opportunity to work as an executive Assistant to a PA who is the administrator for a home health agency. Working directly with the PA on his everyday duties has definitely given me a clear picture of what I will be doing as a PA and I am extremely excited to start that journey. I have gone through obstacles, and I know there is still a long road ahead of me. All of my experiences have shown me how to be a good communicator and listener for any age group, the ability to apply knowledge to problem solve independently and with the help of others, the motivation to work hard and above all the passion to improve others physical and mental health. These are essential qualities in being a great physician assistant. I just want the opportunity to gain all the medical information needed be successful in this field.
Connor Adamson says
I have been interested in the healthcare field for as long as I can remember. I have always been interested in human anatomy and physiology. I was able to explore that interest in high school by taking the year-long anatomy and physiology class. When I enrolled at the University of Nebraska, I chose to major in athletic training, which always interested me because I was involved heavily in sports in high school. Going into college, my goal was to go to physical therapy school. It sounded like something I would enjoy as my career, but I had done little research on the field. I was able to start observing in the training room fairly soon into my freshman year to start learning firsthand the scope of the profession. I made it my goal to be accepted into the athletic training program after observing for the freshman year. I spent the year following upperclassmen and learning the daily duties of a student trainer. I worked with the football, basketball, and baseball teams. After the first year, I was accepted into the program to begin working towards an athletic training degree. Beginning my sophomore year I started work for the football team, which was very time consuming. The athletic medicine branch of the football team had many daily operations. Those who worked for the team spent the majority of their days at the training room, practice field, or game field. The trainers could sometimes arrive at five in the morning and not leave until six or seven at night. While hearing about the extensive hours from mentors during freshman year, you don’t truly understand it until you see it. After working for the football team for a semester, I started working for the campus rec center and a local high school. You never got to see day by day progress of the athletes while working at the rec center. One of the rewarding things about athletic training was to see one of your athletes come out of surgery non-weight bearing and then next week have them walking because of your work. This aspect of athletic training was removed in the clinic setting. The following years of college I was able to work with the volleyball and soccer teams. It became apparent that most athletic trainers primarily work with younger ages of people. Also, the vast majority of issues we were working with were musculoskeletal injuries. The hours in the training room seemed like too much time in one place for a career. By the second semester of my junior year I had decided that I wasn’t as interested in physical therapy or athletic training as I previously was. I thought about pursuing a career in medicine. To explore this career, I called my uncle who is an Ob/Gyn in Georgia. I asked him about a career as a physician, but he offered an alternative of being a physician assistant. He spoke about how physician assistant has much more variability than a physician. If someone wants to change their focus from one aspect of medicine to another, it is easier to do this as a physician assistant than a physician. The flexibility of the career is very enticing, as I enjoy working in many different facets of a job. A physician assistant is found in found in communities of all sizes, and in virtually every medical and surgical specialty. There will be many opportunities for finding a job in any particular niche. My uncle also mentioned that the career outlook for a physician assistant is very bright. The number of jobs that will be open for PAs will be much greater compared to a physician. After speaking with my uncle I was interested in exploring the PA career more than I previously was. I applied to schools my junior year of college and after not receiving any interviews, I decided that I needed a greater and more diverse scope of direct patient care. Upon graduation from college, I searched for a job with exactly that description. I was fortunate to find one at a hospital in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Over the past 10 months, I have gotten to shadow PAs and NPs and see the scope of the careers. I have worked countless hours with many different patients. From newborns to patients in their late 90s. I’ve gotten to work with joint replacement patients, bowel obstructions, and appendectomy patients to name a few. I have been very fortunate to work at this hospital that has such a large variety of patients. In conclusion, being a physician assistant would have many advantages over careers I’ve thought about in the past. I would be able to diagnose and treat illnesses like a physician. Unlike a physician, however, I would be able to change specialties with relative ease. I would be able to work with a large variety of patients and not singularly work on musculoskeletal patients. There are many different settings a PA could work in, expanding options for a job. The opportunities are in abundance, and the field has a great outlook for the future.
Michaiah Hughes says
I really appreciate any feedback! Your site has been so helpful as I’ve progressed through the CASPA application. Thanks in advance!
“She’s unresponsive. Airway full of vomit and a weak pulse.” I knelt beside the fragile female patient curled into fetal position on the asphalt and used a Yankauer suction tip to suck vomit from her airway. Recognizing her decreased respiratory drive, I directed my partner to squeeze oxygen into her lungs as we waited for the paramedics to arrive. My fingertips turned white as I sealed the bag-valve mask against her face, determined not to allow a single molecule of oxygen to escape. I mentally begged her to breathe.
While I had assisted in treating a few patients before encountering her, taking responsibility for her care marked the first time my well-worn textbooks sprung to life in a tangible way. This experience traveled with me to Haiti, where I played with malnourished children who somehow radiated energy, cheerfully chasing each other through the searing heat. I felt the same connection with them that I had felt with my unresponsive patient, but now the connection was clouded with frustration. My training was inadequate to provide the care they needed. When I left their village, memories of our playtime would not fill their bloated, empty bellies or their bare pharmacy shelves.
These experiences still frustrate me. Although I am honored to touch each patient’s life, I am keenly aware of my limited scope of practice. Both overseas and at home, I have met too many patients with medical issues that develop into emergencies because they lack education and accessible healthcare – two disparities I do not yet have the training to combat. I am confident that becoming a PA will fulfill my longing to deeply impact a patient’s course of treatment. Even amid the chaos of Temple University Hospital’s Emergency Department, PAs make time to build connections with each patient, easing anxieties with friendly smiles and synthesizing even the most complex diagnoses into easily understandable explanations. I am motivated to enhance my ability to impact patients, to provide preventative care before complaints become emergencies.
I know I cannot make this impact alone; in fact, being part of a healthcare team is the aspect of life as a PA that appeals to me most. In my EMS squad, trust is quickly earned as we take responsibility for each other’s safety in the streets of North Philadelphia. We overcome personal differences to treat hostile overdose patients and tag-team the gentle assessment of assault victims, building lasting bonds that I have found to be unparalleled by any other team experience. Now that I know the depth of EMS family bonds, I am excited to continue building similar bonds throughout my PA career.
Although I thrive in a tight-knit team environment, I was reminded this past spring that teamwork is rarely free from challenges. As I invested increasing amounts of time into guiding our EMS team through a polarizing leadership transition, I was torn between meeting my own standards of academic excellence and ensuring the welfare of my EMS family. Study nights were interrupted by teammates who needed a shoulder to lean on; crucial appeals hearings conflicted with Genetics tutoring sessions. Throughout this quandary, I realized resigning from the squad meant abandoning my family in the middle of our crisis, and tackling this challenge with my team would be far more stretching than quitting to focus solely on academics.
This growth was intensely challenging, yet incredibly valuable; even now that the crisis is resolved, the diplomacy and tact I refined while resolving our team’s deep rifts continue to impact my leadership strategies. I grew most through my partnership with the Director, as guiding our team beyond festering discord often required significant patience with each other as we learned to combine our different leadership styles. Working together through this process enabled me to cultivate communication and partnership skills I will continue to hone in my relationships with physicians.
In May, I realized my EMS journey was coming full circle. I pressed through crushing graduation crowds with Alex, a new EMT, to reach our patient – an elderly woman who writhed in pain. I knelt by her injured head to stabilize c-spine, giving Alex implicit permission to lead patient care. The patient’s tears dripped over my fingers while she described the recent death of her husband after sixty-four years of marriage. As I witnessed Alex’s first experience connecting with a patient, I remembered my similar moment with my unresponsive patient. Although I never learned her name, the passion this girl ignited pushes me through overnight EMS shifts that bleed into early morning lectures, guides me through a maze of science courses, and inspires me to gladly spend weekend nights treating vomiting patients. Helping Alex find her passion showed me that I am ready to pass the baton to EMTs like her and step into the next phase of my medical journey, toward my destination of becoming a physician assistant.
Kelsey S says
It was a perfect night for a football game; the mid-September air was both crisp and warm. From my vantage point on the sideline, the stadium lights illuminated the players and my father, the head coach. It was midway through the second quarter of the game between my father’s high school team and their cross-town rivals when the star quarterback was sacked. I heard screaming. I was only twelve at the time, but I recognized something was very wrong. I noticed the Athletic Trainer run onto the field, so I grabbed the water bottles and followed suit. When we got to the quarterback, I saw his lower leg a mangled and bloody mess. The Athletic Trainer cut the player’s sock and revealed a compound fracture just distal to the knee. I helped him splint the injured leg, and held it stable while we carted him off the field to an ambulance. I had never felt so important. I was no longer just “Coach’s daughter”, I had a sense of purpose.
Since that first taste of medicine there was no turning back. From then on I knew I wanted to practice medicine, though I was unsure in what capacity. My grandmother, an Army Nurse, said I had an aptitude for it as I was helpful to a fault–my first grade teacher caught me doing my classmates’ homework. I just always wanted everyone at their best. In high school I took classes that demonstrated the wide world of medicine, and learning the language and problems of this field spurred my interest. Exposure to the healthcare world reaffirmed that this was where I belonged as it fueled the sense of purpose I had acquired on the football field.
During college I double majored in Sports and Exercise Science and History. Sports and Exercise Science built upon the medical knowledge base I had acquired through anatomy and physiology and medical technology classes in high school. My degree in History taught me how to listen critically to a story, tease out the significant details, analyze, form conclusions supported by evidence, and effectively communicate- all vitally important in obtaining a patient history and developing a differential diagnosis. My history degree helped me to understand and appreciate diverse peoples and has broadened my awareness of ethnic, racial, religious, and geographic groups. A non- English trauma patient was brought to the Emergency Department and the doctors were having difficulty assessing him due to the language barrier. While going through his personal effects I found a Tunisian passport, and asked the patient, “parlez vous francais” as I knew that area of Africa had been colonized by the French. The doctors were able to proceed with the assessment in French instead of waiting for an Arabic translator to arrive. I am able to apply this awareness with respect to how I deliver patient care.
After college, I shadowed a Physician Assistant in Orthopedics for many hours in clinic and in the Operating Room. I appreciated his work ethic, breadth of knowledge, and the time he was able to spend with each patient, answering questions and assuaging concerns. On one occasion, the PA sat in the exam room with a collegiate athlete and go over every detail of an upcoming Anterior Cruciate Ligament repair surgery for nearly half an hour. The patient was worried that his athletic career was coming to an end, and that he would lose his scholarship, but at the end of the conversation I watched the worry drain off of his face. This was time I knew no doctor would be able to spend with their patient.
On a medical volunteer trip to the dominican Republic and Haiti I debrided the necrotic feet of a diabetic woman who had walked four agonizing miles to reach my care. She had already lost four toes on the right foot and the great toe of her left. I worked diligently with the rudimentary supplies available for close to an hour, trying to ignore the pungent smell of necrotic flesh. I placed the last bandage and told her I was finished. She stood up, and to my surprise, embraced me. I realized the tears flowing down her face were of gratitude, not pain. In that moment I knew I had found my calling.
I want to be a PA because, simply put, I want to make a difference. I want the ability to take the time with my patients, like the PA I had shadowed, to answer questions and assuage concerns. It is my desire to help improve the quality of my patients’ lives, because I still want everyone to be at their best. I want to collaboratively, reminiscent of being on the sidelines with my father. I want to be a PA because it is a profession where stagnation is impossible, with many specialties in which I can be a life-long learner. I have applied previously, and despite the setback I remain resolute in my desire to become a PA. I have gained more hands-on patient care experience, volunteered in my community, and retook the GRE. Admittance to a PA program is the next step toward me becoming the person I strive to be.
Jody says
I am over the character limit, however, I was hoping with your help I would be able to decide what should be taken out and what I should keep. Thank you in advance for your help!
I could see my peers, out of the corner of eye, nervously gazing through the tiny cracks between their fingers that covered their eyes as the limp body in the video was cut open and examined. I was too intrigued by the anatomy of the human body that was being dissected and observing what I had only known previously as colorful pictures in my anatomy textbook to notice that more than half of the class had left the room. Following the video, my high school anatomy teacher, Mr. Jayo, immediately approached me. It is he, after acknowledging my attentiveness to the video and my aptitude to use my knowledge to identify what was being shown on the screen, who first recognized that the medical field was where I belonged. Five years later and my peers whose hands covered their eyes were now medical professionals with face masks over their mouths and the only thing separating me from the action was no longer a television but instead a cart holding the sterile instruments. As I stood in the operating room a foot away from Dr. Szeto and his PA Brooke, watching as they performed open-heart surgery, I thought back to that day in class. Mr. Jayo was right; the medical field was exactly where I belonged.
Though medicine has always been a field of interest of mine, it took a molding of all of my experiences for me to realize that it was my purpose in life. Finding your purpose is often daunting and may appear intangible, which is something I can vouch for. I turned to a quote said by Bishop T.D. Jakes, “If you can’t figure out your purpose, figure out your passion. For your passion will lead you right into your purpose” and it is through this philosophy that I inevitably found that pursuing a career as a PA was my purpose in life.
All it took was helping one young boy, Angel, during my sixth-grade lunch period to discover my passion. Angel had an intellectual and developmental disability and from that day forward I was fully devoted to being an active member of the life skills program. I spent countless hours each week from sixth grade until I graduated high school with life skills. It became such an immense part of my life that I joined an international non-profit organization known as Best Buddies and spent my college career as a one-to-one buddy. The many years I spent with individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and seeing smiles, that I held some responsibility for, were something I valued tremendously, however, I knew that there was something bigger for me. I could take this passion of mine along with my ambition and instead of changing someone’s day, change someone’s life.
Up to a certain point in my life I anticipated no greater feeling could equate to the feeling that you made a difference in someone else’s day, that is, until I began interning at Chester County Hospital’s Cardiac Rehabilitation Center. My life had been fixated around putting smiles on the faces of those who needed it; however, this internship gave me an even more overwhelming feeling, the feeling that I had a hand in enhancing someone’s quality of life.
Working in cardiac rehab led me towards my decision to pursue a career in the medical field and, by providing me with similar responsibilities, assured me that I have what it takes. I treasured my duties there but I knew that it wasn’t the field I wanted to build my career in. The captivating part about the medical field is the wide assortment of healthcare professions one can pursue; however, the difficulty that comes with this variety is deciding which profession best suits you. Through my own experiences, I have always had an admiration towards physician assistants and their interaction with their patients. But how can one be sure a shoe fits until they’ve tried it on? I found myself taking on any experience I could. I had the chance to spend several days at the hospital in the CV center witnessing catheter procedures, stress tests, and echocardiograms. While I respected the specialists I observed, the impact that the PA’s I shadowed had on me was like no other. Whether it was Paul’s calming tone as he explained the illness to his patient, Jon’s gentle hands as he wrapped his patient’s leg in the cast, Brooke’s effective teamwork with Dr. Szeto as they performed open-heart surgery, or Carly’s comforting words as she assured her patient that surgery would be a success, there was something special I valued about each of them. Having the opportunity to shadow several PA’s in different fields such as family medicine, orthopedics, cardiac surgery and pre and post-op clinics opened my eyes to the world of medicine and made me appreciate the flexibility within this profession.
Just having the experience doesn’t make for excellence. It’s how you’ve learned from that experience that makes the difference. While my hours of experience may be limited to that of others, there is one thing that I am certain of; through every volunteer program, job opportunity, and the many shadowing experiences I have had, I have learned not only about myself but about what it takes to be a successful physician assistant.
Jaya Rao says
Week 1: “Paisa … Paisa”
Amidst the bustling streets of Bangalore, my attention honed in on the meek voice of an elderly man begging on the sidewalk. The sight of his feeble outstretched arms, occluded vision due to cataracts, and motile disability from leg amputation hit me like a wall. As a ten year old raised in suburban NewYork, I had been oblivious to the incredible disadvantages that underserved populations faced: until now. I left the man with the meager amount of rupees I had; but the vivid image of the sorrow behind his cloudy eyes, pang in my heart, and feeling of helplessness didn’t leave me. I wondered, how did his loss of eyesight and motility arise? Could he have been walking if someone had intervened earlier? Did he even have access to these resources? This striking experience became the first of many factors that inspired my dream to pursue medicine, and ultimately a career where I could aid underserved populations and prevent such suffering from occurring.
Week 2: “Namaste!”
My granduncle’s exuberant greeting bellowed across the hallway-sized clinic, penetrated through the noise of infants’ wailing, and illuminated patients’ faces. Knowledge of my inspiration to pursue medicine had rapidly spread through my family, and ultimately led to shadowing my granduncle at his humble clinic in the rural impoverished town of Papanasam, India. I was astonished at the dearth of examination rooms to accommodate the overwhelming number of patients, the paint chipping from the walls, and the simplicity of the clinic in comparison to ones in New York. However, inspiration arose from my granduncle’s seamless administration of medications, efficiency of patient treatment, and cheerful demeanor. The rest of the day was spent admiring the compassion my granduncle exuded, and culminated in my dinner table interrogation of the requirements, responsibilities, and benefits of his profession. I discovered that despite being one of five physicians in a village of ten thousand, toiling long workdays, and facing scarce resources, my granduncle never felt defeated or exhausted because he was sincerely dedicated to his profession. I immediately determined to be just like him; I wanted to follow in my role model’s footsteps, have everlasting energy even at the age of seventy-five, and fill my home with peace. All because of a career that kept me happy, motivated, and inspired each day.
Week 3: Return to America
Motivated by my adoration of medicine, I started volunteering at the local hospital, researching different niches in the medical field, and fulfilling STEM requirements in school. A few years later, I was volunteering at LOURDES hospital in Binghamton, choreographing fusion Indian dance performances, and achieving an outstanding GPA of 3.90 as a junior in college. Inspiration to become a PA arose when I shadowed a laparoscopic cyst removal at LOURDES last semester. The PA and Physician’s consistent collaboration, cooperative maneuvers, and reciprocal techniques captivated me. Although the physician was leading, he assumed a more doctrinal position while the PA was able to perform similar duties without assistance, work simultaneously, and learn actively. Curiosity about the responsibilities, requirements, and _future potential___ of the profession provoked me to join the pre-PA society, seek advice from my pre-health advisor, and shadow an internal medicine PA. The more my knowledge of the profession grew through shadowing activities and discussions with healthcare professionals, the more intrigued I became.
Through my learning and experience it occurred to me that my love for medicine was so broad, that it would be impossible for me to just focus on one aspect of medicine. As a PA with the ability to transcend specialties when desired, I would be able to fulfill my passion for medicine, encompass aid for all typologies of ailments within underserved populations, and refer to a physician for advice if needed. Despite continuous medical advances, there are still challenges and shortages of trained medical professionals to serve the needs of patients in both developing and developed countries. By becoming a PA, I will be able to serve the needy patients in the United States and perhaps an elderly man on the streets of Bangalore one day.
Ester says
Sunglasses check, kneeling down with shoes on my knees check, cue the music! Whenever, my mom looked upset, I would try to cheer her up by dressing up with ridiculous clothes and accessories, singing. Ever since I was young, whether it was singing or playing the violin, I loved how music helped put my mind at ease and entertained people. It wasn’t until my mom was admitted to the hospital due to her poor heart condition that I was exposed early to the healing processes facilitated by health aides. It was then when I felt helpless and thus found my interest in medicine where I was able to put my musical skills to use.
Once I began science courses in college, I became empowered by having knowledge that explained my mother’s heart condition. I began to feel less of the vulnerability and uselessness that I had felt when I was younger. A hunger developed for more knowledge and ultimately dictated my decision to pursue a medical career. I was hooked especially when we had to dissect animals. Instead of being disgusted by the stench and the look of the deceased samples, I was always the first one to examine it and to make a careful incision cutting steadily down with my right hand just as if I was holding a bow. After nine years of placing my left fingers quickly and efficiently onto specific notes on the strings of the violin, it was only routine that I was able keep practicing picking out the organs and replacing them to its original place until I got it down perfectly.
I was confident that health field was where I wanted to be. However, during the fall semester of 2013, my mother’s heart condition worsened and my brother’s mental health plummeted. I planned on putting off school to assist my family, but I realized that if I wanted to help, focusing on my academics would suffice. Ultimately, the stress negatively affected my academics that semester, but I didn’t let that semester continue to overcome me. Instead, I soon found a way to manage my stress by listening to music and studying with my peers. As we helped one another study, I realized that I loved to teach and was able to find ways to make studying science easier by linking the topic to a song.
Because I was interested in disease-centered philosophy and loved what I learned in college, I completed my degree as a pre-med student. It wasn’t until I worked as a medical assistant at a women’s clinic when few patients asked me if I was a physician assistant that I first heard about the profession. It was exciting when handing surgical instruments to the physician, prepping patients, and comforting patients. However, I wanted more quality time with patients and be able to diagnose and treat them with the help of a higher position aide when needed. After researching about physician assistants I found out it was a perfect career for me.
As a re-applicant and a lifetime learner, I changed my job and became a CNA at a private company. The more I worked and met up with varieties of people, the more eager I was to becoming a physician assistant. As I took Ms. Hutcheson to the clinic due to her hearing problems, it was a physician assistant who greeted her and conversed with her as if he knew her for a long time. When I explained to the physician assistant how she had trouble hearing lately, he examined her ears and went by her side to explain what he was about to do to help her. Squinching her eyes and holding tightly onto my hands, the physician assistant tried to irrigate Ms. Hutcheson’s ears with an ear syringe. After trying multiple times, nothing came out. Because her ear wax was built up excessively, he instructed to get debrox earwax removal aid and wrote down steps of how to use it at home to ease up her ear wax before she comes back.
Although Ms. Hutcheson wasn’t happy about not being able to hear right after her appointment, it was the physician assistant’s friendly and reassuring attitude towards her that didn’t bother her to come back. Just like how the physician assistant knew the patient personally, more than what was documented in her medical history, I was able to have the same interpersonal level with my clients as a CNA. I also enjoyed being able to recognize a change in behavior whether it was with Alzheimer patients or physically disabled clients. However, no matter how comfortable or trustful clients are with me, I am limited to help as a CNA. I believe that being able to have more quality time with patients leads to building a trustful relationship and thus help patients comply to instructions and become healthier.
Doing poorly one semester, witnessing a decrease in health within my family, and not getting accepted last year felt like being caught on fire wanting to run away from the distress. Despite the failed outcomes and hardships, I have learned to rise above the ashes and remained resilient to achieve my dream of becoming a physician assistant. My interest in multiple aspect of medicine, compassion to teach, loving the quality time with patients will benefit my patients. In addition, just as how I was able to shift my musical talents to studying science, I am fit to become a perfect candidate as a physician assistant due to their flexibility to transfer their knowledge from one specialty to another. Practice, practice, practice was the key to perfection when I played the violin and thus I will continue learning science until it resonates in my ears and will thrive to be the best I can be to see the hopeful smiles on peoples’ faces.
Timothy Kim says
I just want to say thank you for having this type of help as well as encouraging comments and blog posts that have greatly helped me. I am not as confident that I will get in this first round due to my lack of experience and low grades. But I feel inspired from what you share and hopefully I will be able to one day get in and thank this website and share to others who are in the same boat as me.
At the age of seven, I experienced my first encounter of having a loved one to pass away at an early age by disease. My uncle died due to cirrhosis of the liver, which he battled and ultimately lost. I remember when I was told that he had passed, I thought to myself if there wasn’t there more to be done and what could I do to ensure that no one would feel the helplessness I felt as well as the pain of losing someone so close to them.
In my junior year of high school, I started to volunteer at Memorial Hermann Hospital where I got to experience and observe patient – doctor interactions as well as see the work environment of the hospital. On one of my rounds, I heard some screaming and yelling from an elderly Korean grandmother who was disoriented and was not cooperating with the doctors and the nursing staff. Her family member who translated and was in charge of her stepped out of the hospital and no one on the floor knew how to speak to her to calm her down. I quickly told the nurses that I could speak Korean and offered my assistance in any way. They told me that she needed to take some sedatives to calm her down and I started to talk to her to explain the situation. As soon as I spoke she turned to me with fear in her eyes and asked me where she was and where her caretaker was. I calmly told her that her caretaker had quickly stepped out and then asked how she felt and if there was anything I could help her with. She told me of pains in her abdominal side that she was feeling as well as nauseous so I relayed this to the nurses. They still wanted her to take the medicine to calm her down so I did so and I explained to the patient what she was going to take and that it would help her. As she trusted me and took the pills, I had a desire to want to help the patient more and know what exactly was wrong with her.
I also began to yearn to learn more about how impactful the medical practices had outside the U.S borders. Therefore I went on a medical mission trip with a team of physicians, nurses, and dentists to a small town in Guatemala called Tiquisate. My volunteer time began with me doing very simple jobs such as the manual labor and various small duties within the small gymnasium in which the makeshift clinic was opened. My observation of the medical team and translators was that of amazement due to the cohesiveness of the team as well as the patience by the team to treat and explain the treatment to patients so that they thoroughly understood what was happening. The physician’s ability to quickly and effectively diagnose treatments and being able to simplify words with the translator to ensure that the patient knew what was happening to them or a loved one. I started to see the helplessness and fear in patients eye change with ones with reassurance through the kind gestures, caring smile, and confident body language. The most amazing aspect of my trip was the drive and resolution the medical team had. Knowing that their stay was short-term, many team members worked tirelessly for 12 or more hours in a hot and humid gym to get through as many patients as possible. They did not complain nor did they feel burdensome by the oncoming crowd that sought out for help. The selflessness and passion of this medical group inspired me that this is what I wanted and needed to do with my life.
Continuing on my journey of understanding the various health fields provided, I soon took a job as a pharmacy technician at a compounding pharmacy. My role was to take personal information from patients, assist the pharmacist, and compound various non-sterile drugs. I got to learn various sterile and non-sterile techniques but the most enjoyable time was when I got to interact with patients. Listening to patients talk about what happened gave me better insight on what kind of health care worker I wanted to be. Overall I learned a new aspect of medicine that I did not know before and helped strengthen my resolution that the impact I want is more based on patient interaction and diagnosis of disease.
The physician assistant program provides a vast array of skills and teachings that I am deeply interested in and I am hopeful that it will help me to reach my goals. To challenge myself on the expanding health sciences that are constantly being improved and evolved, I hope to be able to have the opportunity to excel and use these skills to help those who need it not only at home but also at other countries. By working with others as a team and extending our abilities to those less fortunate, I hope that I can reduce the look of helplessness and be a reassuring guide in a patient’s journey for better health.
Timothy Kim says
I revised my essay and hopefully this might be a bit better.
Coming from a family who immigrated to the United States and couldn’t speak English fluently or understand it completely, I faced a unique set of challenges. I grew up in a house with parents and grandparents who didn’t have health insurance for most of their lives. And when they did have insurance, they avoided doctor’s visits due to the language barrier. I would go with them to the doctor’s office and act as a translator. Now as an adult, I realize that there are many other patients out there who need help with a variety of things, from understanding medical jargon to simply keeping up with their health, and I’m here to offer it to them.
I realize that you have likely read a plethora of these PA statements, laboriously sifting through them looking for someone with passion, dedication, and a great work ethic – and you have found him.
My journey started as a volunteer at Memorial Hermann Hospital where I experienced the medical environment and observed patient-doctor interactions. During one of my rounds, an elderly Korean woman was disoriented and uncooperative, screaming at the staff and making their jobs more difficult. I quickly informed the nurses that I spoke Korean and they told me that she needed sedatives. As soon as I spoke to the woman, she turned to me with trepidation in her eyes and asked me where she was and where her caretaker was. Although my heart hurt for her, I calmly responded to her questions and asked her if there was anything more I could help her with. She told me that she felt nauseous and had a radiating pain in her abdomen, which I relayed to the nurse. They gave her the appropriate medication, and in that moment I realized that because I had connected with her and gained her trust, I was able to significantly help her. This experience in particular sparked my desire to help patients, whether they have language barriers or not; and it is my hope that you will provide me with the opportunity to experience more of these inspiring moments in your employ.
In addition to my experience at Memorial Hermann, I was a part of a medical mission trip team that headed to Guatemala in order to help those with limited access to medical care. I worked alongside physicians, nurses, and dentists, building relationships and helping those in need. I observed the medical team closely, as well as the translators, who worked incredibly hard to quickly and effectively diagnose patients, prescribe treatments, and explain everything thoroughly to the patients. Feelings of helplessness and distress were apparent in the expressions of our patients, but it was amazing how with simple acts of kindness, caring smiles, and confident body language, their fear melted away. It was an unforgettable experience and I walked away from it with a new appreciation for my team who worked tirelessly for twelve hours straight in a sweltering gym to help as many people as possible. They showed passion and selflessness that I strive every day to emulate.
From there, I continued on my journey, becoming a pharmacy technician at a compounding pharmacy. My role was taking personal information from patients, assisting the pharmacists, and compounding various non-sterile drugs. I learned a variety of sterile and non-sterile techniques and had the joy of interacting with patients. In listening to their health care praises and woes, I gained a better sense of the type of health care worker I wanted to be.
At times children would come up to the counter with their parents to translate for them, just as I had done so many years ago with my parents. I would patiently explain medications and medical terminology, even writing down crucial information so that they could later remind their parents of it. During my time as a pharmacy technician I learned about a new aspect of the medical field, and my resolve to become a physician’s assistant was only strengthened.
Becoming a physician’s assistant isn’t just an opportunity to make a difference in patients’ lives, it is also a format to bring about understanding to patients who may be confused or experiencing a language barrier. The skills and flexibility that my PA program has offered has allowed me to help others, not only in the United States, but abroad as well. In all, my journey in the medical field is far from over, and there is no one that I would rather continue on this journey with than your company.
Erin says
Maureen Murphy left this life laughing. For anyone who knew her they would say it was too soon but they could imagine no other way for her to go. She was remembered by many as an imperfect woman with a strong, fiery spirit who loved with all her heart. She had come home from seeing her first grandchild and was with family when it happened. Maureen tilted her head back, laughing with her whole soul as she always did, then suddenly she was silent and fell to the floor. Two autopsies could only identify a possible cardiac dysrhythmia as the most likely cause of death. It has been 21 years since she left us but my Aunt Maureen inspires me everyday.
Maureen was a recovered alcoholic who sponsored many people through the AA program. The line of people to say goodbye at her wake was so long we had to have an extra day and there were dozens of people who said over and over again “Without her I wouldn’t be alive today.” It is my hope that as a Physician Assistant I can help my patients live fuller lives and that I can help people like my aunt did. I know that sometimes that means being different things for different people and situations. Sometimes a person may just need someone to listen, give advise, and occasionally be firm. While working as an EMT I have been placed in a multitude of situations requiring different skills; some are taught in a book while others are not. The suicidal adolescent who needs a kind ear versus the combative patient with a possible head injury that needs a focused provider versus the intoxicated patient who needs to be reminded of socially acceptable behaviors towards EMS while receiving treatment. There are days I feel her with me sometimes just watching and other times saying “you know this, you got this”. Every once in a while I can hear her laughing at all the craziness that is emergency medicine.
Like my aunt I am not a perfect person and honestly I don’t ever wish to be. I was not a perfect student and had some difficulties during undergrad, some of my own making and others outside of my control. The truth is I should not have overworked myself with a full time job and been a full time pet sitter. However, I had no control over my own body’s attempt to destroy itself. It took time for me to realize the effects of my Hashimoto’s thyroiditis that was draining what little energy and brain power I had left. I do not make excuses for my failings because without the missteps in life I would not be the person I am today. It is my belief that one becomes his or her true self by working through any difficulties or hardships that come in life. My aunt had to find the strength in herself to overcome her addiction and in the process she found the strength to help others who were suffering. Since graduating from Augusta University I have continued to take college courses to show my dedication to improving myself and that I am capable of meeting the challenges of PA school.
The sudden loss of my Aunt Maureen reminds me that life is short and unpredictable. I get up every morning and embrace my day with everything that I have. I love medicine, I love my job as an EMT and I know becoming a Physician Assistant is the perfect career for me. It is my desire as a PA to detect and treat medical conditions so other families are not forced to suffer the pain and utter shock my family endured when we lost Maureen. It is my hope that as a Physician Assistant I can have a more profound impact on patient outcomes. I know that I have the spirit and determination that will make me a great PA. I believe that the best clinicians are the ones who show that they, like their patients, are human. Its not about how many times you fall, its about how many times you pick yourself back up even if that means you get a hand from someone else along the way.
Erin says
I would really appreciate any suggestions for improvement on this essay.
Mak says
Here is my first draft of my narrative. (over by about 150 characters still) Open to suggestions from anyone reading. Thank you!
Gently, I speak words of consolation, rubbing the feet of the young child whose braces I just removed. His body is rigid as he lies flat on the hard surface of our measuring board. His mother exposes his G-tube as she undresses him to for weighing. The child’s body goes limp, as both his eyes and his head roll back. I call for a nurse, who enters and the seizure passes. Tears well up in his mother’s eyes. I observe as the clinicians review his recent lab work, and decide to adjust his medication doses due to his unexpected weight loss. I want nothing more than to reassure Mom that she is in good hands, that our providers are here to figure this out and to help her child. I dream of being the provider that has the compassion and expertise to provide her with this kind of comfort.
I first decided to explore a possible career as a Physician Assistant (PA) during my final year of high school. Previously, I had the desire to strive for a job in medicinal biotechnology. Since my family’s loss of my grandmother to Alzheimer’s disease, I had a burning desire to make strides in medical treatment, and I thought that could only be through research. I then learned that a career as a PA could afford me that same opportunity, without limiting me to a laboratory setting. My work experience in high school taught me that my personality fit better in a role that put in on the front-line, working directly with people. A career as a PA would enable me to do just that. It would allow me to make strides in treatment through day-to-day decisions based on clinical observation, while contributing to existing scientific knowledge.
Attending Northeastern University (NU) provided me a unique set of experiences. I learned to appreciate diversity during my first semester, while abroad, and returned home to study health science. Unfortunately, my focus strayed from my coursework at the end of my sophomore year. My only roommate, her parents, and one of our best friend’s at NU were all injured at the Boston Marathon bombing. Instead of spending my final two weeks in the library studying and preparing for interviews, I chose to be with my friends and their families at the hospital. I decided to retake A&P II, as it did not reflect my abilities. Despite my personal struggle during that time, I was offered a job as a clinical assistant (CA) at Boston Children’s Hospital for my first NU co-op.
The focus of my progression at BCH is on gaining the most valuable experience I can as I prepare to become a PA. I first worked in our Vestibular Lab, with patients of all ages, as we performed different series of unique vestibular testing. The appointments required an extensive amount of hands-on patient interaction through skin prep, electrode placement, body and head positioning within our machines, and holding younger children throughout tests. We worked as a team to effectively communicate the aims of each test throughout each 1-3 hour long appointment. I genuinely enjoyed learning new ways to help patients through these difficult visits. Following my first co-op, I decided to expand on my desires to help in the faster clinical setting of the Otolaryngology (ORL) department.
Surgical specialty clinics mainly utilize their clinical assistants for in-office therapies and procedures. In addition to performing vital signs and reconciling medications and allergies for every patient, keeping patients safe through restraint during examination and procedures was crucial to our daily clinical operation. Even more critical to the department’s success, is our expert utilization of the physician-physician assistant team. The mutual respect and constant learning opportunities I witnessed only further confirmed my desires to become a PA. In ORL and throughout my shadowing experiences, the gratitude expressed towards these fierce patient advocates is a real testament to how rewarding a career it is.
Over the past year, I have been dedicated to growing as a future health care provider and have also grown as a person. I joined a team of physicians and PAs on their research of vestibular migraine variants. The opportunity has shown me that working as a PA can also mean contributing to the advancement and future of medicine. I overcame personal hardship after the loss of two of my best friends to a tragic car accident. I finished my college career strong, with the memory of my biggest supporters propelling me forward. Then, after nearly two years in ORL, I decided to transfer to the department of medicine. My role has expanded to involve point-of-care testing, including pulmonary function tests, finger sticks, A1C tests, and more. The clinic sees twelve different specialties, providing me with an immense amount to learn about medicine through the guidance of our clinicians.
My life has changed significantly over the past six years, however, my dream of becoming a PA has not. I am ready to be a part of a team dynamic of life-long learning, and a flexibility to develop expertise in different areas. I am confident now more than ever that I am ready to dedicate my life to a career as a physician assistant.Gently, I speak words of consolation, rubbing the feet of the young child whose braces I just removed. His body is rigid as he lies flat on the hard surface of our measuring board. His mother exposes his G-tube as she undresses him to for weighing. The child’s body goes limp, as both his eyes and his head roll back. I call for a nurse, who enters and the seizure passes. Tears well up in his mother’s eyes. I observe as the clinicians review his recent lab work, and decide to adjust his medication doses due to his unexpected weight loss. I want nothing more than to reassure Mom that she is in good hands, that our providers are here to figure this out and to help her child. I dream of being the provider that has the compassion and expertise to provide her with this kind of comfort.
I first decided to explore a possible career as a Physician Assistant (PA) during my final year of high school. Previously, I had the desire to strive for a job in medicinal biotechnology. Since my family’s loss of my grandmother to Alzheimer’s disease, I had a burning desire to make strides in medical treatment, and I thought that could only be through research. I then learned that a career as a PA could afford me that same opportunity, without limiting me to a laboratory setting. My work experience in high school taught me that my personality fit better in a role that put in on the front-line, working directly with people. A career as a PA would enable me to do just that. It would allow me to make strides in treatment through day-to-day decisions based on clinical observation, while contributing to existing scientific knowledge.
Attending Northeastern University (NU) provided me a unique set of experiences. I learned to appreciate diversity during my first semester, while abroad, and returned home to study health science. Unfortunately, my focus strayed from my coursework at the end of my sophomore year. My only roommate, her parents, and one of our best friend’s at NU were all injured at the Boston Marathon bombing. Instead of spending my final two weeks in the library studying and preparing for interviews, I chose to be with my friends and their families at the hospital. I decided to retake A&P II, as it did not reflect my abilities. Despite my personal struggle during that time, I was offered a job as a clinical assistant (CA) at Boston Children’s Hospital for my first NU co-op.
The focus of my progression at BCH is on gaining the most valuable experience I can as I prepare to become a PA. I first worked in our Vestibular Lab, with patients of all ages, as we performed different series of unique vestibular testing. The appointments required an extensive amount of hands-on patient interaction through skin prep, electrode placement, body and head positioning within our machines, and holding younger children throughout tests. We worked as a team to effectively communicate the aims of each test throughout each 1-3 hour long appointment. I genuinely enjoyed learning new ways to help patients through these difficult visits. Following my first co-op, I decided to expand on my desires to help in the faster clinical setting of the Otolaryngology (ORL) department.
Surgical specialty clinics mainly utilize their clinical assistants for in-office therapies and procedures. In addition to performing vital signs and reconciling medications and allergies for every patient, keeping patients safe through restraint during examination and procedures was crucial to our daily clinical operation. Even more critical to the department’s success, is our expert utilization of the physician-physician assistant team. The mutual respect and constant learning opportunities I witnessed only further confirmed my desires to become a PA. In ORL and throughout my shadowing experiences, the gratitude expressed towards these fierce patient advocates is a real testament to how rewarding a career it is.
Over the past year, I have been dedicated to growing as a future health care provider and have also grown as a person. I joined a team of physicians and PAs on their research of vestibular migraine variants. The opportunity has shown me that working as a PA can also mean contributing to the advancement and future of medicine. I overcame personal hardship after the loss of two of my best friends to a tragic car accident. I finished my college career strong, with the memory of my biggest supporters propelling me forward. Then, after nearly two years in ORL, I decided to transfer to the department of medicine. My role has expanded to involve point-of-care testing, including pulmonary function tests, finger sticks, A1C tests, and more. The clinic sees twelve different specialties, providing me with an immense amount to learn about medicine through the guidance of our clinicians.
My life has changed significantly over the past six years, however, my dream of becoming a PA has not. I am ready to be a part of a team dynamic of life-long learning, with the flexibility to develop expertise in different areas. I am confident now more than ever that I am ready to dedicate my life to a career as a physician assistant.
Jarrod Beachum says
Twenty-one and newly married, I accompanied my wife to a dermatology appointment. A gentleman walked in our exam room wearing a lab coat, slacks, and a button-up shirt. His first words were “Hi, I’m John, and I’m a PA.” PA? What did he mean? By his dress and demeanor, I expected “Hi, I’m Dr. Smith,” but no, he was a “PA.” Naturally curious, I hastened to ask John about his profession. He took my inquiries in stride. By the end of the appointment, John had explained his duties and the path he took towards becoming a PA. Unknowingly, he planted the seed that would lead to my decision to become a physician assistant.
Since meeting John, I have met many more PAs. I served nine years in the Marine Corps, and so most of the PAs I knew were active duty Navy officers (the Marine Corps does not have its own medical branch). I relished opportunities to talk to them about their careers, education, and experiences. Consistent among our conversations was the enthusiasm about their profession. That has had a profound impact on my decision to become a PA.
My healthcare experience has been working as a Patient Care Technician in the Emergency Department of Jackson-Madison County General Hospital. This job has afforded me the opportunity to witness firsthand some of the most critical applications of medical science. Given the large number of diverse patients seen by this department on a daily basis, there is no shortage of novel illnesses and injuries to learn from. Coupled with a staff of providers and nurses who embrace teaching moments, working here has given me valuable insights into the business and practice of medicine and affirmed my commitment to health care. I am blessed to work alongside PAs on every shift, which has greatly enhanced my understanding of the profession. They have been incredible in mentoring, teaching, and encouraging me.
I will never forget the first code I worked. The patient, Henry, was an elderly gentleman. Lifeless, he was brought into the emergency room during my second day of orientation. Quickly I was thrust into the organized chaos of a code blue. My role was not yet defined in this situation, and I felt somewhat overwhelmed and useless. I’m a large guy, and I could not escape the feeling that I was just in the way. However, my trainer simply said “grab that step stool and get ready to push.” Here it was. My first attempt at compressions on a real human being. Among all these trained professionals and their examining eyes, I was to about confirm or deny my purpose in life. I would be testing not only my training, but my resolve to do anything in my power to bring Henry back.
Standing over Henry, I placed my hands on his sternum and began to push. Up and down, steady and firm, I pumped his heart like it was the most important task of any person on the planet. After what seemed like an eternity, a rhythm check was called and I was relieved by another tech. We alternated in this manner, giving all our strength and energy in an attempt to transmute it into a heartbeat for Henry.
Henry was a fighter. After two hours in Trauma 6, we had brought Henry back, and lost him, numerous times. Every time calling the code was suggested, Henry’s spark would come back. Dr. Cowley professed he had never seen anything quite like it. Faced with the decision to stop or not, I told Dr. Cowley “Sir, I will push all night if that’s what you want to do.” He agreed to one more round. Perhaps I was overzealous in my attempts. Perhaps I was just naïve and thought that quitting was a death sentence.
With our final round, Henry came back again, this time with a pulse that beat like a flame against the wind. Not once during our trial was he so strong and coherent, even responding to directions to turn his head and lift his hands. It was amazing! I had never seen something like this in my life, and the exuberance of the moment overwhelmed me. With tears in my eyes, a nurse embraced me. I was exhausted. “You did great in here,” she said. I just looked at her. I could not verbally express what was going through my mind. It was a mixture of joy and sadness, because although we had won the battle, the war was not yet over. Even though I was new, I had a feeling that our efforts were most likely to give the family just a little more time with him, rather than giving Henry a new lease on life.
In the months since then, I have worked many more codes. We have won some and lost some. I have learned to accept the frailty of life and the limitations of medicine. As they say, sometimes it is just their time to go. Despite this somber realization, I have been strengthened in my resolve to march on despite the obstacles in my way. I have seen the profound way that medicine can impact people and their families. I have witnessed injuries healed, diseases cured, and spirits mended. Through God’s will and mercy, we can lift up the broken person and make them whole again. That is why I want to be a physician assistant.
Catie says
Please explain why you are interested in being a Physician Assistant (up to 5000 words).
The human body has always amazed me. I feel like there is always something new to learn and I want to know every bit! Even as a teenager, I enjoyed looking through the pages of an anatomy book or watching surgeries and medical cases on the discovery channel, not exactly the most normal hobbies for a teenage girl. The fascination grew when I walked into the anatomy lab as a 16-year-old post-secondary student. Naming all of the bones, creating the muscles with clay, discovering the cadaver and learning how each part of the body works in conjunction with others; I loved it! I also got that adrenaline rush before every lab test; I do love a challenge! At that moment, I knew I had to enter the medical field. Not only to fulfill my desire to learn more and more about the human body, but to use those skills in a way that I can be helpful in my community. Thinking of being a part of changing lives, finding cures, and making differences big or small, yes, this is definitely what I wanted to do when I “grew up”!
At 17-years-old, I entered an occupational therapy assistant program at a community college in my hometown, excited to train to be part of the health care field. We learned many useful concepts, studying how diseases could affect an individual’s function and practicing interventions we could complete, as therapists, to help these individuals live life as fully as they could after an illness or injury. This education was so valuable in teaching me that a patient is not just the cancer they have or the broken leg they are suffering from, but they are fathers or little league coaches or perhaps even a chef! All of this is so important to consider when providing medical care. I am so thankful to have been taught to treat these patients holistically, taking into consideration all parts of their life.
I have worked in the medical field as an occupational therapy assistant for 5 years now, working in various fields including outpatient, inpatient rehabilitation, acute care, orthopedics, pediatrics and mental health. My favorite times, those when I realize why I’m in this career, are those of watching patients, who may have come in so ill they were unable to even dress themselves, and see them walking out of the rehabilitation unit to go home where they were now able to participate in their favorite activities, such as attending their grandchildren’s games and their hobby of gardening. That to me was what it was all about, helping someone get better and have quality of life, and along the way, these patients often affected me as much as I did them, with their kind words and stories of where they’ve been and what they’ve come through.
One patient in particular stands out to me. I feel I can pinpoint this moment as one where I really knew I needed a change from the therapy field and that a physician assistant is what I really wanted to be when I “grew up”. My patient, a 40-year-old mother of 3 and lover of Frisbee golf, had to have brain surgery. The surgery, though it saved her life, took some things from her as well. Her dominant side was affected and demonstrated this through severe tremors and inability to coordination movements. These issues along with severe pain in her right arm caused her to be unable to write, cook or play her favorite game of Frisbee golf. She was devastated and couldn’t hide it at our session, often bursting into tears.
We worked and worked but didn’t seem to get anywhere. As a therapist, I was stuck. I used the knowledge and abilities I did have to instruct her in exercises and activities and told her to call her physician with any issues. I encouraged her and provided emotional support but I felt I could do more if I only had the education. I felt so helpless in this particular situation. She began telling me she wasn’t taking her medications because she just “didn’t like to” and was scared about how they could affect her. I did my best to encourage her to follow her doctor’s orders, but with no access to her list of medications as well as no knowledge of pharmacology, I couldn’t help in this situation. I greatly encouraged her to see her physician and to talk to him about this as I felt it was hindering her recovery.
After she made her appointment, a few weeks went by and I could see a change in her. A sparkle in her eye and a desire to put forth more effort in one of our sessions than I’ve seen in months! She told me she spoke with the doctor and decided to comply with her medications including an antidepressant and pain medications. You could see the changes so drastically and she could feel them as well. From that moment, I knew I wanted to be the one that could help in this way. I didn’t want to be the one telling them to go to the doctor, I wanted to be the one practicing medicine that they came to. I wanted to be the “detective” that solved these problems to better the lives of others.
Once I knew I wanted to practice medicine, discovering the root of problems, making diagnoses, finding the right medications, running and interpreting tests, and even assisting in surgery, I needed to figure out what the best path was. I first found out about the physician assistant field from an unlikely source, my husband. He is a medical lab technician who is feeling the same way about wanting to be more involved in patient care and had been researching a career as a physician assistant.
After researching and shadowing we realized the physician assistant career fit us perfectly. Everything about the job just seems to “click”. The idea of being part of team made up of doctors, nurses, therapists, and other health care provides seems to me the very best way to be involved in healthcare. A team approach can be helpful in so many ways, providing knowledge and support when you need it and making patient care better. Also, the physician assistant schooling and career gives a life balance that medical school is unable to achieve which is perfect for me and my husband! I have also been impressed with interacting with PAs as a therapist. I often call to talk to them about a patient’s post-surgical protocols and discuss any issues. I often see a PA’s name on our therapy orders that come through! My patients have always been very pleased with how PAs have treated them. After shadowing and talking with a few PAs, I have learned that they often have more time to spend with patients (increasing patient satisfaction) and they agreed that they loved the flexibility of PAs to work in different fields and they loved their job overall! Not only did they say it, I could tell as they interacted with patients. It was so awesome to see them talking to patients, trying to figure out what the problems were and the best course of action. Using tests, exams and interviews to get the whole picture and finding a diagnosis and treatment, this was it, I knew I had to be a PA.
Meagan Henley says
As the lights from the front door cut through the dark night and hit my eyes, a sense of fear muddled with uncertainty also hit my heart. Where had the confidence I had gone when I was driving over? It was my first shift as a home health aide. Her name was Judy. I gathered my courage and walked towards the door. As I stepped through the door I heard moans of pain and I began to question again if I could really do this. Could I give her the care she needed? Judy was bed-ridden, constantly had to take medicine, and completley rely on the care of others. However when I introduced myself to Judy and began to talk to her those questions of doubt were answered and I felt my confidence grow. I felt deep sadness as I witnessed her condition, but a responsibility grew within me to care for her the best way I could. I sat with her and we, as she would say, had “girl talk”. We talked about life, death, and pain. She wept as she talked about her condition. She often wondered if she had found purpose in her life. Throughout our conversations my mind began to shift to my hopes and dreams. Caring for Judy unearthed something within me I felt I had been looking for my entire life.
Growing up a child of the physician, I would visit my father in the hospital often. I became a witness to his kindness and dedication to his patients. Despite the long hours and stress, my father always told me it was worth it because his job meant something to him. He knew he was making someone’s life better and it inspired in me to discover for myself what I could do to give back. I dreamed of joining the medical field. As I advanced through school science became my strong suit and it felt like destiny that I would enter the medical field; however, something felt like it was missing. On paper I felt like I was a strong candidate, yet on the inside I questioned what was my motive?
Throughout college I continued to focus on my studies and extracurriculars. My journey to find the heart behind all this work felt endless. I desperately wanted to connect and find a purpose. I saw glimpses here and there as I volunteered at a local elementary helping students. It made me come alive to use my abilities to help the student improve. However, I knew that I wanted to specifically help someone medically because I had always known the medical field is where I felt at home. I felt this is where I could make the greatest impact. I began to see Through my further experiances at hositpals and clinics working with patients and medical professionals I felt I had finally found purpose.
Caring for Judy was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I learned to be selfless and gentle. I learned what it meant to care for the person and not just go through the motions of caring for the illness. Most importantly I discovered my true sense of purpose. What I had been searching for came to light when I realized that I felt like my true self when I was caring for someone with an ailment and using my knowledge and empathy to help ease the pain. It was something that came so naturally and gave me so much joy and satisfaction. Bridging the gap between my head knowledge of desiring to be a medical professional and the heart of why I wanted to do that has made all the difference.
Flora says
My dad was the quintessential adventurer. He built is own hang-glider in his 20s, was a self taught electrician and mechanic, and was consumed with wanderlust. He instilled a sense of exploration, curiosity and wonder in me at an early age.
When I was 15 years old, my dad was diagnosed with stage IV cancer. Numerous tumors in his brain and lungs caused my strong, stubborn, and intelligent father to lose his mental acuity, memory, physical abilities, and passion for life. This fiercely independent man found himself deeply dependent on his family, friends, doctors, and caretakers to help him through his daily life. His frustration and pain were palpable.
However, we managed to stay positive. This would not have been possible without the incredible support provided by his oncologist, brain surgeon, rehabilitation nurses, hospice caretakers, and therapists. My dad regained much of his coordination abilities and spatial awareness after going through open brain surgery to remove a tumor from his parietal lobe. His rehabilitation nurses spent hours leading him through exercises until he was able to walk on his own again. I was in awe of the powers of modern medicine, and I idolized his caretakers. These individuals’ compassion, persistence, and expertise allowed my dad to live long enough to teach me to drive his 1996 manual Honda Accord, attend my high school graduation, and support me as I moved 1,200 miles away to Colorado to go to college.
My dad passed away during my first semester of college, but the sense of exploration and thirst for knowledge he planted in me never died. While attending university in Boulder, Colorado I had endless opportunities to explore both the stunning landscapes of the state and cutting-edge academia in labs and classes both on CU’s campus and abroad while on exchange in Australia. The amazement I felt while I dissected my first cadaver in Human Anatomy Lab was unforgettable. Getting a hands-on look at the inner workings of the human body sparked a desire to learn more about this profound, unified, incredibly complex system, and inspired me to declare a major in Integrative Physiology. I applied and furthered the knowledge I gained in my classes through working as a children’s gymnastics coach, interning at a physical therapy clinic, and conducting research in a lab at Loyola Stritch School of Medicine.
Although I have graduated, I never want this learning to end. At my current job as a medical assistant at a dermatology clinic, I am not only learning about the myriad of clinical conditions that affect skin, but also about how to interact with and support a diverse patient population. At Cherry Creek Dermatology I have seen the erratic behavior of a schizophrenic patient and the contrasting steadiness in her demeanor when controlled by medications, have found ways to communicate effectively in spite of a language barrier, and have heard a 101 year old woman’s first hand account of surviving the holocaust while losing her family. I help educate patients on their conditions, medications and care instructions. At the same time they are teaching me too, about their individual needs, background, life experiences, and outlook. I cherish the reciprocal relationship between provider and patient.
“Flora the Explora”, the nickname my dad gave me as a child, has continued to hold true in to my adult life, both in my experiences and my aspirations. As a physician assistant, I will be constantly learning about and gaining experience in the specialty I am working in, and will have the opportunity to change specialties and explore other areas of medicine. My two PA mentors, who I interact with daily, both worked in other specialties before dermatology. One’s rural family practice background, and the other’s general surgery background manifest themselves in how they interact with patients, and their strengths in certain areas of the practice. Their ability to bring their unique skills to the table and collaborate with each other and with the supervising physician makes the practice strong, diverse, and multifaceted. As a PA, I will be able to utilize my strong interpersonal skills and compassion for those around me coupled with my thirst for knowledge and knack for problem solving to provide superior care for my patients.
A physician assistant is a teacher, a scientist, a problem-solver, a counselor, and a friend. A physician assistant is adaptive, caring, inquisitive, patient, and intelligent. PAs have ability to completely alter a person’s medical experience and outlook on their disease, like my dad’s health care providers did. I cannot wait to be a PA.
Kathryn says
Mr. Jones’ call light was going off for the third time in less than an hour. I stepped into his room to see what I could help him with, even though I was already sure of the answer. He wanted to speak with his physician assistant again, even though it was a simple question that his nurse or I could easily answer. Instead of being annoyed, the PA calmly entered his room to once again answer his questions regarding his medications and treatments. She even went as far as inserting the catheter Mr. Jones needed after he requested she do so. I admired the PA’s ability to remain patient with this gentleman as she expertly educated him on his illness and subsequent treatment. Watching her work just confirmed my desire to fill that role and have that impact on my patients.
As a nursing assistant, I work within the hospital’s float pool so I travel to different departments, helping out wherever I am needed. This position requires me to be very flexible as I learn my assignment shortly before my shift and must adapt to working in a different specialty with a different group of team members. I have worked in emergency medicine, general medicine, pediatrics, cardiology, intensive care, neurology, and surgical care. While I full the greatest pull towards general medicine/primary care and pediatrics, I enjoy working in different areas and not being tied down to one department. Being a PA, I would be able to have a similar experience as PAs are able to change specialties relatively easily. I am intrigued by the idea of being able to switch specialties as a PA, particularly as I progress through my career.
Working in different departments I have seen and appreciated the amount of teamwork that goes into a patient’s care. Regardless of department, I typically work with 1 – 2 other nursing assistants and 1 – 5 nurses. I depend on this team throughout my shift to provide the best care for my patients. Similarly, PAs work closely with their supervising physician to provide optimal care. During my shadowing experience, I watched her consult with her supervising physician regarding the care of a declining patient. Together, they were able to come up with the best course of treatment and determine the necessary follow up plan for the patient. Throughout my academic and healthcare career, I enjoy having such a team to support me and with whom I can brainstorm the best solutions. In college, this team consisted primarily of my academic advisor, research mentor, and research partner. In my position as a nursing assistant, this consists of other nursing assistants, nurses, doctors, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners. Although I am a self starter and am capable of working independently, I appreciate the support and new ideas that come out of a teamwork approach to healthcare.
Before becoming involved in patient care, I often went back and forth between becoming a teacher and having a career in healthcare. As I grew up, I realized that gravitated more towards healthcare, but upon learning about the PA profession, was excited at the prospect of being able to incorporate my desire to educate others into my profession in healthcare. While shadowing a PA at her cardiac electrophysiology clinic, I witnessed her interrogate pacemakers, explain the results to the patient, and go over medications. I appreciated her ability to take something as complicated as an EKG and pacemaker data and bring it to a level that was understandable to the patient. She was able to expertly tailor her approach depending on the patient and their ability to comprehend the complex information. I hope to use my expertise as a PA to educate my patients so that they can become their own biggest advocates.
While shadowing the same PA, I was further impressed by her relationships with her patients. Her patient population consisted primarily of follow up appointments with patients, many of whom she sees only 1 or 2 times per year. Each time we walked into a patient’s room, she was able to greet the patient by name and ask them about a personal aspect of their life. Even though she only saw these patients once or twice a year, she was able to easily recall their previous encounters and catch up with them on a more personal level. I often find myself interacting with my patients in a similar manner and desire to develop such a relationship with my patients as a PA. I hope to build long lasting relationships with my patients, which is largely what drives my desire to work in primary care or pediatrics.
I have now worked at Duke for over a year. Prior to this I volunteered as a hospital patient escort for just over a year. Both experiences have shown me how much I enjoy the direct patient care aspect of healthcare. I enjoy getting to know my patients, sharing stories with them, relating to them, and making a positive impact on their life, even if it is only for a day or a few hours. I know that a career as a PA will allow me to continue to have this impact on people on an even bigger scale.
Dorian says
As a young Corpsman at my first duty station, my superiors informed me that I needed to prepare for an upcoming deployment. Worry began to flood my body as I began to receive a brief on the current conditions of the location I would be serving for the next seven months. During this brief, I was told that I would be attending the Naval Trauma Training Center in LA before my departure. The training was an intense 6-week course designed to expose us to the types of injuries, illnesses, and disease that we could potentially see while on deployment.
As I arrived at the facility, I noticed the population receiving care at this facility was different than what I had experienced on base. The health of the patients I cared for was great compared to what was in front of my eyes. I now was exposed to a population riddled with traumas, abuse victims, drug users, prostitutes who sustained violent injuries, and criminals handcuffed to their gurney. Initially, I was intimidated by this environment, but quickly remembered why it was that I had chosen to pursue a career in the medical field. My reasons were clear; I was there to administer care, to help, and to heal people regardless of their condition or backgrounds.
Throughout the duration of this course, I witnessed my love and passion for medicine intensify. Once assigned to our teams, I discovered that I was with this unfamiliar member of the medical team. I was immediately drawn to him and given the opportunity to converse daily about his role on the medical team. I watched and assisted him throughout the hospital. He was a PA. His tenacity, knowledge, versatility and passion for patient care was contagious. As a team, we treated trauma patients in the emergency room, and during this rotation, I was able to perform cardiac massage and discover what a smoker’s lung looked and felt like in my very own hands. We changed dressings and learned various techniques to treat severe burns. We also learned how to intubate patients, place chest tubes, and so much more in the SIM labs. We even prepared the bodies of the deceased patients for the family. Witnessing these moments were heartbreaking and at times hard to walk away from at the end of the shift.
By the end of the course, I was identified as the class standout and awarded “The Hard-charger” award. More importantly, I had discovered where I belonged on the medical team. The exposure we received at this facility has stuck with me throughout my journey to become a PA.
This training opened my eyes to not only the conditions outside of military healthcare but also how various factors can affect the level of care one receives. As a volunteer with an organization called Healing Hearts Across Borders, I experienced the impact that the lack of resources had on this group of people in Mexico. It made one realize how fortunate we are in America and how often we take the resources we have for granted. We seldom think about how much worse things could be while we complain about our waiting time in our doctor’s office. Through my journey to become a standout applicant I have also obtain a greater perspective of our community. I’ve had opportunities to demonstrate the importance of helping your fellow man even while on the road to pursue our personal goals to my children. As a family, we have participated in events with Habitat for Humanity, Homes for Our Troops, our church, and through our local shelters. Sharing these experiences helps them understand and appreciate what they have in life.
During my time in the military as a Hospital Corpsman, I worked in the ER, specialty clinics, and hospital administration. I became an EMT-B and certified in Pre-Hospital Trauma Life Support. Aside from my faith and family, nothing in this world has been more rewarding and satisfying than direct patient care. The feeling I get when experiencing the mysteries of the body is incredible. I could have never imagined that this field would have such a positive impact on my life as a whole.
Following my enlistment, I returned to the civilian world and continued to take the necessary steps to become a PA. Although transitioning was not as smooth as I had anticipated, I continued to work towards my goal. Not only was I re-entering the classroom as an adult, but I was also in some ways a single mother. My husband at the time had orders to continue his career as a Marine on recruiting duty which required late nights. He had courses that would take him away for months of training and went on deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. These factors had a negative impact on my ability to dedicate my time and focus on my course work which resulted in less than favorable scores. Ultimately, I completed my Bachelor of Art (Psychology) degree.
My personal journey has shown my children that although life brings obstacles, there are always ways to get through them as long as you keep striving for what you want.
Sue Edmondson says
Hi Dorian,
Sorry, I only give one free review. If I did another for you, I’d have to do it for everyone.
Best of luck,
Sue
Justin says
“Nice you guys, hold it for 3-2-1! Let it go!” As the students let out sighs of relief, I look around and feel immense gratitude that I have the opportunity to help each of them improve their health. Practicing and teaching yoga has lead me to focus on the concept of Atman: our truest self that represents the nature and substance of who we are. Atman helps us rediscover the joy and enthusiasm of childhood that is usually forgotten as adults. With the weight of this forgotten identity on our shoulders, we chase the excitement of our lost childhood dreams, becoming greedy, competitive, and narcissistic. Recently, I have been shifting toward daily practices that enlighten my Atman and allow me to experience that same joy and enthusiasm.
As a medical assistant and phlebotomist at Nest Integrative Medicine Spa, I had the opportunity to learn ways to support patients in their journey to conquer their illnesses and expand upon my knowledge through this versatile clinical setting. It was about a year ago that I remember meeting Cathy, a patient that received intravenous therapy three times a week. She was a small elderly woman with short white hair, a well-worn jean jacket with pants to match, and the sweetest southern hospitality. Every appointment I walked out to the waiting room to escort her back to the I.V chairs.
“Cathy, we are ready for you in the back.”
Cathy had recently been diagnosed with Lyme disease. At the time, I did not have much background knowledge about the disease, only that it was typically caused by a tick bite. Throughout my time at the Nest, I came to know multiple patients with Lyme, each manifesting different symptoms. For Cathy, her Lyme disease affected her neurologically, causing regular brain fogs. Throughout her treatment process, I connected with Cathy and discovered many different ways I could facilitate growth by creating an environment that promotes comfort and ease with basic human connection. During one of our conversations, Cathy expressed that she loved to knit all of her grandkids beanies and other garments, but after her diagnosis and onset of symptoms, she was unable to focus long enough to complete her projects.
“Cathy, we are ready for you in the back.”
Cathy greeted me and immediately jumped into a conversation about her new hobbies that have replaced knitting. The fear that used to be written on her face was replaced with a comfortable smile. It was in this moment that I realized that Cathy and other patients like her were each small, but powerful, reminders of my Atman. Each individual shed light on my innate desire to care for and comfort those around me.
“Cathy we are ready for you in the back.”
It was the same as always, yet this time I noticed she sat down with knitting needles. As I asked about her return to her crafts she simply responded, “ I have a lot to catch up on before Christmas.” From that point forward, for the next three months, she was knitting religiously. Despite not having a medical test to prove so, Cathy was making progress.
Christmas arrived quickly, and our office was extremely busy. I momentarily emerged from of my office, “Cathy, you can head on back. I will be there in a sec.” On my way to sit back down at my desk covered in papers I looked up to find Cathy at my door, a red and white striped box in hand. She said, “Merry Christmas Justin” as she handed me the box with a smile from ear to ear. As I started to set her gift down she insisted that I open it immediately. With Cathy looking on with eager eyes, I cut away the tape holding the box closed. Inside was a beautifully knitted scarf in multiple hues of green and blue. “I hope you like it. I know it’s not something you typically wear with your bowties and cute socks, but it’s my way of saying thank you.” She gave me an embracing hug and made her way to the back.
In that moment, the scarf was more than an accessory – it transcended being an article of clothing. That scarf was a symbol of the positive impact I was able to have on this individual’s medical journey to increased cognitive functions. I was honored to have been apart of such monumental progress and I wore the scarf twice the next week. It has become a favorite piece of mine, not because it matches any ‘outfit of the day’, but because it is a reminder of my Atman.
Her hand knitted scarf reminds me that an innate desire to care for people is my true self. To aid in a person’s journey to find their true self again by applying science and medicine is a blessing and I intend to utilize my knowledge and personal experience to help one patient at a time. I never expected that working as a yoga instructor would influence other aspects of my life in such a profound way. I aspire to expand upon the supportive skills I have developed in both my experiences as a medical assistant and as a yoga instructor thus far to become a physician assistant that integrates the multiple facets that make up health care.
Meghan Ross says
3.9 is the percentage of African American’s that are certified Physician Assistants. This extremely low statistic shows how racially disproportional the Physician Assistant field is. During my two decades here on this earth, I have yet to meet an African American Physician Assistant and I believe it is my purpose to change the trend of this overwhelmingly low census data. I am an African American woman who has difficulty finding a primary care, dermatology, obstetrics and gynecology, acute care, etc., health professional to provide care to me. My dream is to be that source of someone’s familiarity, security, and support that I could not find.
I have known since I can remember that I wanted to pursue a career in medicine. In my mind, the health care field was a given, although the area I preferred was unknown to me until a shadowing experience. My father was the first person to suggest shadowing a Physician Assistant after researching and shadowing Physicians and Nurses and not feeling satisfied. Over the last few years I have received opportunities to study a Physician Assistant’s behavior and role in multiple settings. In various shadowing experiences in areas of surgery, internal medicine, intensive care unit, and the emergency room. Also, through working at a hospital and interacting with medical professionals, I often witness how large an impact Physician Assistant’s have on a health care team.
Being a part of the health care team as a Physician Assistant became so important to me after traveling to South Africa for an unique experience and internship through a University located in Cape Town. The internship set us up to work with a non-profit organization that focused on public health as well as education for children in primary school. Something that is close to my heart is serving others and expecting nothing in return. I gain more from my service experiences than any other trip I have taken. While in South Africa and after speaking with many of the citizens of the community, they let us know that the public hospitals and health care offered in Cape Town were rumored to be so unsatisfactory and dire that residents of the area stated that they would “rather die” than get treated there after an accident affecting their health. After hearing that, I knew that I picked the right career for myself. I want nothing more than to show people that it does not have to be that way; that they could walk into the hospital I practiced in and be positive in knowing that they will be receiving top-notch care and attention from my staff and I. As a future Physician Assistant, I plan to instill confidence in my patients that I will first and foremost be their advocate. I also think it is of upmost importance that patient education becomes a critical portion of any appointment or conversation with a patient. Patient education will not only build confidence in the decisions I have made as a health care provider, but will also allow patients to take an authority role in their health, a role that is sometimes lost in current culture.
Through this experience I realized that I have an undying privilege simply due to the fact that I was born under different circumstances than the people we were working with. My privilege will allow me avenues and opportunities that many people will never have the chance to come across. My obligation and responsibility is that I will use my privilege to give opportunity to those that would not otherwise have it. In the healthcare field as a Physician Assistant, I plan to use my mindset to help those who are in need of it. These unique experiences have fueled me to use my education, my health, my socioeconomic status, my chance to further my education to learn the ins and outs of medicine so I can help those in undeserved and underprivileged communities. My unique experiences has prepared me to become a Physician Assistant by giving me an uncommon point of view, humbleness, vision, and motivation to help those deserving or undeserving no matter the circumstance because it is my dream and what I believe I have been called to do.
I am a strong candidate for Physician Assistant schooling, for I am determined to be a leader in the health care field. I have illustrated great interest in the field through participating in internships, various volunteering focused on health care, shadow and work experience in health care. I have exemplified that I am able to undertake the course load presented before me. I am confident in the fact that I can carry the responsibility of being a patient advocate and implement the changes that need to be made to enhance patient education and responsibility in the lives of those I come in contact with medically. I plan to become a much-needed resource for the many patients of color that are looking for one. My goals for my future as a Physician Assistant are immense, and now is when I hope to begin my journey.
Elizabeth says
72 minutes, it depends how you look at it, but 72 minutes could be a very long time or a very short time. I imagine this 72 minutes was a long, stretched out, exaggeration of the typical 72 minute period. Anyhow, that’s how long Amanda laid there, lifeless. No heartbeat, no signs of regaining one, and no hope left in the doctors’ minds. Amanda’s husband, Kyle, wasn’t willing to give up though. After Amanda had randomly collapsed that evening and Kyle performed CPR for eleven minutes before the paramedics arrived, he was not going to let the doctors stop trying to revive her. Kyle told the doctors that he would perform CPR all night if he had to, and within seconds, Amanda regained her heartbeat, after 72 minutes.
I was just fifteen years old at the time, but this emotional night would guide me to the Physician Assistant (PA) profession seven years later. Amanda’s story is my inspiration behind pursuing a career in the medical field. After 72 minutes without blood circulating her body, 2 weeks in a coma, months relearning everyday tasks, and years attempting to make a fully recovery she walks, talks, runs, and is raising her 3 children like any other mom. When Amanda was in a coma, I remember spending many hours with her little girl, as she was my teammate. I will never forget the fear that Amanda’s daughter shared and my inability to help. This helplessness has shaped my focus of supporting not only the patient, but their entire family.
I devoted my four years at Purdue University to an organization that raised money in support of a local children’s hospital. Through this organization I was able to meet children with many different medical backgrounds which sparked my interest in pediatrics. Whether they had been treated for the H1N1 virus, Leukemia, Ornithine Transcarbamylase Deficiency, Spina Bifida, or so many other illnesses, they exuded more strength than I believed humanly possible. That strength radiates through the family, as well as the patients, which I believe is an important aspect that sometimes gets overlooked.
Overall, my desire to become a PA, rather than following another path in the medical field, came from my hours shadowing three PAs, all in different specialties. I have been able to observe how a PA works in clinical, hospitalist, and surgical settings. The diversity that I have already seen possible through this occupation is appealing. These PAs have extended my interest in pursuing this profession due to the hands-on patient interactions and the ability to truly impact the treatment plan for the patient.
Since the last application cycle, I have learned an immense amount, both about myself and the PA profession as a whole. I have worked tirelessly to improve my credibility for acceptance into PA school. I have completed a Bachelor of Science in Movement and Sports Sciences with a minor in Biology from Purdue University. I have gained hands-on patient care experience through working as an ABA therapist at a pediatric therapy and behavioral services company, Kids Count. I work one-on-one with children with autism focusing on cognitive, behavioral, and social skills in a clinical setting.
Becoming a physician assistant is very important to me, especially now that I have had experience working in different areas of the medical field. From a retirement home, multiple hospitals, pediatrics, and surgery, I am confident that this profession will allow me to pursue any direction that my future leads. Through becoming a PA, my main goal is to treat both the family and the patient. That helpless feeling that I felt with my teammate and her mom is a feeling I want to eliminate through my work.
Ivan says
As the Boeing 747 approached for landing the pilot’s voice came over the sound system to notify the passengers, first in Ukrainian, then Russian, and finally in English. I stared through the window as thoughts raced through my head and the plane approached the tarmac of Boryspil International Airport. I was so thrilled and at the same time nervous that it felt as if the plane was descending at an accelerated rate. I assumed the sensation was due to the fact that it had been eight years since I left Ukraine! I wondered how much changed, would I be able to recognize my family, the street where I grew up, or the school I attended. I left Ukraine at the age of nine and at seventeen it was the first time I returned to visit. Naturally a lot changes in eight years, and not always for the best. My grandmother contracted Parkinson’s disease after I left for the United States. The first thing I wanted when I arrived in my hometown of Chernivtsi was to go see her. I spent most of my childhood at my grandmother’s apartment while my mom worked because I was the child of divorcee parents. When arrived at her apartment for the first time in eight years she was stooped over on the couch, she could not get up because her muscles were stiff, and she struggled to speak. She lost so much weight and looked so frail I hardly recognized her, I was devastated. I couldn’t believe what this disease did to my grandmother! This was the grandmother who cared for me while my mother worked. Seeing her in that state was overwhelming. I couldn’t understand how a disease could debilitate someone so much and why the healthcare system in Ukraine could not do more to help her manage her condition. As I sat there with my grandmother saddened by the fact that she was resigned to living with her affliction and wishing I could do something to help her, an idea to pursue a career as a physician assistant was incepted.
A year after that trip I enrolled in college. My first year of college I delivered pizzas, worked as a cashier at a local filling station, and attempted to have a social life on Friday nights all of which led to a lackluster performance in school. I didn’t receive a single A grade my first year of college. I failed to learn how to manage my time and study while I was in High School. I knew I had to make a change if I wanted to be a better student, so I decided to get my priorities in order. I quit my pizza delivery job and doubled down on study time. My goal was still to become a physician assistant and I wasn’t going to quit. It was in the first semester of my junior year that I turned it around for myself. Genetics, Physics, and Organic Chemistry I was taking the classes that many students dreaded but with each exam my confidence grew along with my desire to learn more. After I learned how to manage my time and study I decided to retake classes from my less impressive earlier years in college.
As I continued to improving my grades I knew that what I would like to do next is get experience caring for patients. I was not sure where to begin when a friend of mine recommended I apply at Homecare Services. She worked with the company prior to going to Medical school. She told me that working for Homecare she learned a lot about interacting with patients and being a compassionate caregiver, so applied for the job. When I first took the job I was not sure if I would succeed at it. It turned out I should not have had any reservations about it because I have really enjoyed working for Homecare, the people make it enjoyable. When they tell me “I wouldn’t know what to do without you”, “You are a blessing to have around”, or “You’re such a big help” it makes me glad that they are happy with the care I provide. But working at Homecare I feel like I don’t get to do enough. So I took an EMT class and started working for the ambulance service in my town as well. Working as an EMT I have seen how doctors, physician assistants, nurses, and paramedics all work together to save a patient’s life. Getting to be a part of it and to watch everyone play their incredibly important role in emergency medicine has been exciting. To learn additional valuable skills that will help me care for the patients I transport and become a more valuable asset to the emergency medical team I registered for an Advanced EMT class.
Working as caregiver and an EMT I have had the opportunity to help people with strokes, dementia, Alzheimer’s, infractions, and Parkinson’s and as a PA I will have the opportunity to help countless more. I was never able to help my own grandmother before she passed away but I imagine that she would be pleased that I am working to become a physician assistant!