PA Education and Practice in Maryland: Current Status, Opportunities and Challenges

Abstract

Physician assistants/associates have become a well-established component of the US health care work force. In Maryland, the PA profession is flourishing with more than 3600 PAs in active clinical practice and 5 operational PA education programs. A growth rate of approximately 40% has been projected between 2018-2028. The Physician Assistant Leadership and Learning Academy (PALLA), based at the University of Maryland, Baltimore with funding from the state, was created in 2019 to advance PA education, research, policy, and practice in the state. Consistent with this mission, PALLA regularly conducts an environmental scan to ascertain current opportunities and challenges facing the PA profession in the state. In fall of 2023, PALLA undertook an examination of the status of the profession and the state’s PA educational programs. For this report, PALLA conducted a series of semi-structured interviews with Maryland PA program faculty, program leaders, and deans. PALLA also analyzed secondary data from both local and national agencies. Several themes consistently arose from this analysis; among them were a strong demand among applicants, PA graduates staying local, concerns regarding program leadership and faculty stability, challenges in the development of effective student remediation processes, and the issue of clinical site and preceptor shortages. Additional areas of concern identified by Maryland PA program leadership and faculty were issues related to accreditation, levels of institutional support, faculty turnover and workload, sufficiency of support, and lack of diversity among faculty and students. There was a desire among interviewees for increased collaboration between PA programs and other health professions. At a practice level, PAs are making a strong impact in various clinical settings and the demand currently outweighs the supply in Maryland. However, scope of practice regulations remains a major barrier in maximizing PA value in Maryland. Based on current opportunities and challenges identified, we present a series of specific and detailed recommendations that we hope will stimulate discussion among various stakeholders while advancing the quality of PA education, policy, and practice in Maryland