Physician Assistant Interview Questions

Why do you want to be a physician assistant?
- I want to build strong connection and relationships with my patient so that I can change their health and life for the better.
- diverse array of medical experiences so that I can provide more comprehensive care to all my patients
- The focus on clinical treating patients and building relationships with patients
A) talk about how shadowing you witness that PA's would go above and beyond
-talk how you volunteered at Dao Medical group and how it has further shape your resolve to go into primary care
-Working in a variety of fields has demonstrated to me my love for connecting and treating pt.

Why PA over NP
-Generalist nature of PA
A) able to enter any healthcare speciality
- most importantly clinical training
A) during clinical year I want to receive as much exposure to pt as I can
B) while NP do receive clinical experience it is not as extensive as PA clinicals
- double the clincal rotation hours which which would exposed me more and make me better clinician .

What is a PA?
-A physician assistant (or PA) is a nationally certified and state-licensed medical professional.
-they are an integral part of the health care team.
they practice medicine with the supervision of physicians and work alongside nurses to provide care for a patient. they can practice in primary care or can specialize.
-Physician assistants diagnose, treat, write prescriptions, manage acute and chronic illnesses, do preventative medicine, and assist in surgeries.
-they are educated in the medical model
-Because of their general medical background, PAs have flexibility in the types of medicine they can practice without having to go back to school .they can be responsive to changing healthcare needs.

PAs Are:
1. educated as medical generalists
2. competent to diagnose, treat, manage, assist in surgery and coordinate care for pts of all ages
3. qualified to lead a patient care team as the primary care provider
4. educated in a team-based model, ideal preparation for team-based care
5. at ease with a flexible scope of practice
6.ideal for meeting evolving practice needs

PA scope of practice
1. obtain medical history
2.conduct physical assessments and examinations
3.diagnose and treat
4. manage acute and chronic illnesses
5, preforming and interpreting dignostic and lab studies
6. prescribe
7. counseling and teaching health and nutrition
8. refer out
0. perfrom minor surgical procedures

How long have you wanted to become a physician assistant?
- I was introduce to the PA profession by a classmate midway through my college career
- It was not until further research after college and shadowing did I realize that I wanted to be a PA

How does a physician assistant fit into the healthcare model?
- PA's can be integrated in most part of the health care field
- PA's are trained as generalist and can respond to changes in healthcare
-PA's extend the physician care and act as the physician right hand
-fill the gap in medicine and can provide aid to remote areas that need help
-PA's play a versatile role
A) leaders to medical staff
B) support to the physician - surgical first assist, second opinon
-promote health education and care coordination

issues in my community
-there is stigma seeking mental health
- improve communication with vietnamese pt
- promote awareness and acceptance in the vietnamese community - so that many can seek mental health treatment

How do you see the healthcare system changing in the next 10 years, and how will it affect PAs?
- Expanding as more people are able to seek medical attention
-Obamacare will improve and lead to higher quality of care
-PA's will be more needed to fill the increase need for medical providers
A) possibly have more responsibilities
- PA will be more utilized to reduce the cost of health care
-

What is managed care and how has it affected physicians and PAs?
- managed care is healthcare system in which patient agrees to only see certain providers within their network
- although it reduces over treatment and manages cost of health care it has caused
A) under treatment
B) limits physician and PA in individualized treatment that best treats and serves the needs of the pt

What is the most important factor between a PA and his/her supervising physician? Why?
- Trust
- Trust builds a strong communication system and confidence in both parties

My biggest weakness
- worry a lot
- A) learn to worry about the things in my control and take a step back from the things i cant
A) tend to plan things as much as possible so i worry less

- terrible at spelling and not the greatest essay writer
A) takes me longer than others to write a good essay

If you had to be a member of the healthcare team other than a PA, what would you choose?
- another physician extender such as NP, although the clinical rotation experience and education may be different, the roles would be similiar

Who is the most important person on the healthcare team?
- Everyone works together to better the health of the patient.
-Healthcare team is based on team work, understanding and communication between team members to achieve a common goal.
- Everyone on the healthcare team plays a vital role.

What part of becoming a PA and practicing medicine as a PA do you look forward to most?
-Consulting and making relationships with my patients
- my dream is to become the type of provider that my patients feels comfortable talking about anything with.
- Seeing the life of the patient change after all the hard work the health care team and patient have put in.

What parts will give you the most difficulty?
- I think the hardest part would be doing everything I possible could for the patient and the chance of survival being low
- When patients lose hope in their condition and themselves after all options have been exhausted

How has your background prepared you for the intense physical and mental training to become a PA?
- Work throughout college in a pharmacy while maintaining good grades
- Good support system of friends and family to help me when times get tough
- Making the necessary sacrifices to reach my goals.
- Learning the skills required for two new jobs during the same time while taking on a full course load

What have you done to increase your chances of being accepted to a PA program?
-volunteer
- try to learn as many skills as possible
-increase PCE
-Study and work hard to earn good grades in all my courses
-shadowing

What do you think are the 3 most important aspects in evaluating a PA program?
- environment
-curriculum and staff
- values and beliefs

What about a PA student?
- dedication
-integrity
-compassion

Where do you see yourself in the next 5-10 years?
- primary care PA for the undeserved community of Anaheim
- PA advocate
-Father and husband
-Perhaps per diem for cardiology or pain management

What is a dependent practitioner, and how do you feel about practicing as one?
- PA's are dependent practitioners who perform their responsibility under the supervision and guidance of a physician
A) most PA seems to have a good amount of autonomy but are ultimately supervised by a dr
- Has pros and cons
A) guidance and second opinon
B) love being a team player
C) working in the healthcare field , I could take on the role of leader and teamplayer
D) Always have a support
- i welcome the fact that PA are dependant because I work better and more efficiently in team based settings and value the ideas and thoughts of others

What are the most significant issues PAs currently face and will have to face in the future?
-Awareness of the profession
-Lack of certain CME for Re certification
-unity within the PA community
A) lack of support of AAPA and NCPAA

What are good qualities of a physician assistant?
-compassion , dedication, integrity, courage
A) compassion = to understand the patient
B) dedication = to go above and beyond to ensure the health of the patient
C) integrity = to build sincere relationships with patients and collegues
D) courage = to stand up and advocate for the patient

What does the affordable care act mean for the future of physician assistants?
-Increase in patient means there is a higher need for PA to fill the gap in medicine
-PA will be able to treat a larger scope of patient

What do you think are the 3 most important aspects in evaluating a PA program?
-Pance Rates
-Environment
- Mission of the program
a) the spirit that the school is teaching

What do you think are the 3 most important aspects in evaluating a a PA student
-dedication and compassion to helping others
-integrity
-competency

What are the trends and directions of healthcare in our country
- Alot of patient do not have PCP and over relying on self referral = drives up the cost of health care
-more pt are shopping around with insurance
-increase use in telemedicine
-value based reimbursement for providers
A) difficult to measure

What are the difficulties/challenges you'll face when you work in your profession
- explaining to pt what a PA is
A) lack of awareness of pt's
- Pt death
-Pt self medicating and self diagnosing

How many CME do PA need ?
100 hrs every 2 years

PA recertify every ?
10 years
- Originially through the NCPAA but now the AAPA is creating new recertifying body

What is the history of the PA profession?
-Proposed by Charles Hudson to AMA
-started by Dr. Eugene Stead at Duke univeristy in 1965
A) comprised of naval corpsman and medics to extend medical services to underserve areas
B) used the fastrack military approach to training Dr in WW2

If it comes down to you and one other applicant, why should we select you?
- strong academic background
- diverse healthcare experiences = pharm tech, surgical assistant , MA
- compassionate, warm, trustworthy and dependable

What is your favorite hobby?
- do not have a favorite hobby but enjoy lots of things
A) cooking
B) dancing
C) working out
D) board games

How has your previous clinical and non-clinical experience prepared you for a career as a medical clinician?
-clinical experience has provided numerous skills such as consultations, assisting in procedures and being able to understand my patient
-how to handle stressful situation
- how to be a critical thinker and do what is best in tough situations

Why do you want to leave your old job/profession to become a PA?
-increase my scope of practice
-Make a bigger impact on my pt's lives
-Have fulfilling career in medicine
-Wanted to have a say in the treatment and diagnoses of disease

Why should we accept you?
- I am dedicated and compassionate person who has strong desire to change the live of those around me .
- If I am accepted I will find ways to improve and advocate for the PA profession
-Strong academic background
-I believe in the mission of the campus and the whole body approach

What was the last movie you saw?
- 

Have you ever seen anyone die?
- No I have not but I have had people close to me die
A) good friend Minh who was hit by a car in Virginia
B) suffered depression

Should physician assistants change their name to 'physician associate
- I believe that the title should not matter , it is the work and dedication to patient that is most important imo
-I do believe there are alot of misconceptions as to the roles of a physician assistant but changing the name will not change the view of a PA
A) we need to promote the profession more , spread awareness and advocate
-Changing the name may better align with the true role and responsibilities of a PA.

Should PAs get reimbursed the same as physicians?
- I believe PA's should get reimbursed an amount fair to the service that they provide and equal to the quality of care that give to each of their patients
- Whether that is equal to or less than physician is dependent on skill and dedication of the PA to their field
-ultimately i believe that physician do deserve to be reimbursed more due to their extensive clinical training and the high level of responsibilty that comes with being a doctor.

Should be PA education be standardized to a master's degree
-The trend towards masters level PA programs started many years ago. Currently, the majority of PA programs are at the masters level. It is difficult to say that ALL PA programs should be masters level bc most of the PAs who were pioneers of the profession did NOT have masters degrees. However, I do believe a strong case can be made that the rigorous didactic and clinical training in PA school warrants a masters degree.
A) Also would help with unifying and standardizing the education of all PA.

What do you think of HMOs and PPOs
- pros and cons

What are three things you want to change about yourself
- Take more risks in life and be spontaneous
- learn to write better
-worry less

Do you think PAs and NPs are in conflict with one another?
-I believe that NP's and PA compete for similiar jobs but are not in conflict
-From shadowing at DAO medical group I rarely saw conflict between the NP's and PA
A) worked as a team to support and nurture the patient
B)

What would your best friend say about you
-loyal
-exceptional work ethic
-compassionate and patient

When have you had to say no to a patient
-When a patient insisted on driving themselves home after sedation
-patiently and adamantly told him no
A) due to safety reasons
-when a patient wanted information about their cousin's condition and when the last saw Dr. Yu
a) explained to them how it was a violation of hippa

Do you think social security should cover all senior citizen's healthcare costs? Should there be limits?
- SS should not cover 100% of healthcare cost because it can lead to abuse of the system
-Pt then are not responsible for their own health and leads to poor management of health
-Should be limits and situational
A) covered 80-85% and remaining depends on the pt current situation
- if pt is poor then covered by other gov agency
A) pt is well off then it should be covered by secondary or pt's responsibilty

Your supervising physician or fellow PA are drunk at work, what would you do?
- Tell them to go home and come back tomorrow because they are a danger to themselves and the pt's. If my supervising physician refused then i would have to report him to the medical board because it is my responsiblity to ensure the safety of the pt's.
- As a medical provider he or she should know better and have the maturity to not treatment patients when they are intoxicated

What would you do if a physician gives you orders that you know will harm the patient?
- I would take a step back and analyze the situation and try to understand the thought process of why the physician made that order
-Following if I was still unsure I would consult the ordering physician and determine why he chose that treatment
A) perhaps it was by mistake by me or by physician
- If I know with 100% certainty that it is a mistake that can harm the patient , I would not follow those orders and tell the supervising physician that I am not comfortable with that and that if those are your order than you will have to go through with it
A) document incident

A patient is sent home at the end of a long day, but you gave him a medication he is allergic to. Your supervising physician says not to worry and that he'll be fine. What do you do?
- contact patient immediately and explain the situation
-tell patient to stop taking medication
A) if the patient has taken already, provide him information and schedule a follow up with patient asap
-notify the healthcare team of the mistake
-notify the hospital or clinic safety committee of mistake
- document the mistake and follow up with patient the day after
- learn from this mistake and be more careful next time

You have a Jehovah's Witness patient that needs blood, but you know religiously they cannot accept it. What would you do?
- explain to pt the need for blood transfusion for their condition
-Ultimately it is the choice of the pt
- Try to reason and explain why the benefits out weigh the risks
- if pt is unconscious contact the next of kin and explain the situation
A) life or death
-try to figure out other ways to save pt's life that does not go against their beliefs

You know it is unethical to treat your own family, but if it were allowed, would you do it?
-I still would not treat my own family because it may be a conflict of interest
A) being a provider to own family may cloud your objective judgement for the best treatment
-For example if a family member were deemed brain dead
A) medically they have expired but as a family member I would try to do everything I could still to keep them alive
- If my family member were to die under my treatment , i dont think i could practice medicine

What would you do if your patient is diagnosed with syphilis, but doesn't want to tell his wife?
- You respect the pt's wishes and protect his privacy
-Provider and patient bond is sacred and does not violate hippa
-Medical provider dont impose personal belief or judgement on their patients
-encourage patient to openly talk about it with partner
A) provide information of risks to their partner but ultimately the decision is the PT's

What would you do if you saw a classmate cheating on an exam?
- I would tell the classmate after class that I was uncomfortable about that they were cheating and encourage the classmate to tell professor and ask to retake the test
- If we allow others to cheat , we are only cheating them and their future patients
A) if the classmate is okay with cheating, so who knows what kind of things they will be okay with in terms of their patients - giving the wrong meds and not saying anything or changing their charts to cover up their mistakes
-If the classmate were to cheat again then I would report them to the professor and dean

How do you handle stress?
- take a deep breath and assess the situation
A) do the most important tasks first and stay conscious of my surroundings
- If it's personal stress than I would go exercise and lift weights to get clarity and to reduce stress

What do you do outside of work or academic studies?
- Volunteer at multiple clinics
- lift weights and exercise
- dance
- mentor former students through their college career

What accommodations do you need to successfully complete this program?
- no accommodations would be needed because I am a very adaptable person. If i struggle in something I figure out ways to overcome my obstacles and determine the path to success with the highest efficiency possible.

What will be your hardest class if you are accepted?
-Behavioral health
A) not very experienced in psychology and associated diseases
B) although it will be challenging , it is something that interests me so I will give it my full attention and focus

What will you do if you don't get in this year?
- Determine what I can improve upon
- Continue to get patient care experience and volunteer
- Go on a medical mission
- shadow more specialties
- find a MA job in primary care

What would you do if a patient adamantly refuses to be seen by a PA?
- everyone is entitled to what kind of provider they wish to see. if the pt refuses to be seen by a PA then I would explain to them what a PA is and our training.
- if the pt still insists on seeing a physician then I would thank them for listening and I will have the physician see them instead
A) if the pt isnt comfortable or trusting of their provider , we can't provide the best care

What was the worst or most disappointing experience of your life?
- Not getting accepted into a university right after high school
- loved going CC and do not regret it but the disappointment of feeling inadequate caused a change in me and made me want to be my best.

What's the hardest/most difficult thing you've ever done?
- Assisting Dr. Wang on a I&D on the worst case of perianal abscess he has ever seen
A) had no experience in colo-rectal surgery and have never assisted in an I&D
B) taught me how unpredictable medicine is
C) But I was able to successfully assist the Dr and prevent sepsis
D) Dr.Wang told me a great job for a first time assist in a procedure he never showed me how to do

What is your biggest accomplishment?
- graduating summa cum laude + working
-Being able to assist Dr. Wang with high risk pt and helping to prevent sepsis

What would you do to solve the 'ER' problem?
- increase accessibility of primary care offices for patients
A) urgent care
-educate pt's on preventative measures
-Make myself more available for pt to be seen

Do you prefer to work with others or by yourself?
- I prefer to work as team when everyone on the team as the similar mindset
- multiple minds are always better than a single
- I believe teamwork is vital in all career fields but what makes teamwork effective is when everyone is on the same page and contributes their best work to accomplish the goal

Why did you choose your undergraduate major
- it combined both biology and health prevention
- originally was a bio major but felt it was too geared towards research
A) wanted a major that combined by passion of healthcare and biological sciences

Describe a time when you were criticized unfairly and how you handled it
- When a coworker typed and a filled prescription incorrectly on my computer
- pharmacist lectured and blamed me
A) saying that you have been working here for a year now and still making basic mistakes
B) told him about the situation and that I had not filled the prescription
-Pharmacist thought I was lying and continued to lecture me , I told the pharmacist that I did not make the mistake but I will be more careful next time
A) coworker told the pharmacist that he made the mistake and used the wrong computer

Describe the most stressful work or academic situation you have ever been in and tell us how you dealt with it.
-Mr. Rich and multiple perianal abscess
-Taking a organic chemistry final after having oral surgery and on pain medication

Describe an interaction with a patient that made an impact on you.
- Providing wound care to a stroke patient and learning about his life while i doing wound care
-also stretching out his legs and seeing how even the smallest things can make a difference

Describe a time when you almost gave up on something, but didn't. How did you overcome this challenge?
- finding a patient care job
A) applied for months on end without hearing any news back
- thought about giving up and trying to get a certification to improve my chances of getting direct patient care but remained adamant and drove to physician offices to ask if they were hiring
- gen chemistry

Why do you want to go to this school?
-great first time pance rates
- nurtures student and give the student a voice in how they learn
- holistic medicine
-close to home to be able to take care of my parents, far enough to explore and gain new experiences

How are you different from other applicants? What makes you stand out?
- strong academic background
- great work ethic
-honest, compassionate, and dedicated
A) 2 jobs and volunteer on the weekends
B) try to learn and help as many patients as possible

Question: How many tests and quizzes do expect to take a week and what can you handle
- at least 1 test a week with a couple of quizzes and assignments
-I have never be one to shy away from a challenge
A) give it my best and make the sacrifices necessary to succeed
B) plan , stay focus and organized to accomplish goals

Tell me what your typical day looks like?
- wake up 6:30 am
- get ready to work either as an MA or surgical assistant
- drive an hour through traffic
- see patients and assist the physician with consults and procedures
-drive home an hour through traffic
-eat and go to the gym

What kind of personal stress do you see associated with our PA program?
-balancing a rigorous course load and having time to be there for my family
- the learning lot of new medical information in a short amount of time.

What kind of stress do you see associated with the PA profession?
- lack of awareness and understanding of what a PA can offer
-possible lack of respect
- lack of legislative power
-PANRE

What are your biggest weaknesses as an applicant, and what do you plan to do to correct them?
- bad at spelling
- take more time than others to write papers
A) personal statement
-overthink things alot

What are major issues happening in the U.S.?
-cost of epi pen
-gun violence
-conflict between law enforcement and certain demographics

PA Laws in AZ
- can't perform surgical abortion
- physician delegates health tasks
-PA may pronounce death if delegated

PA laws in CA
- can schedule C2 with max 30 days supply
- can perform procedure under local without the direct supervision of the physician
-cosignment of C2 charts

MWU reason
- family member went here and family support
A) comittment to student through open door policy
B) mentorship by faculty
- variety of clinical rotations sites and being able to do 2 elective rotations
-holistic medicine

Ae there any opportunities for students to gain clinical experience during didactic year?

What is encompassed in the 3rd year clinical?

Are there any student clinics which students can help the community and learn to new skills ?

What are some things students can do to be active in the community and school?

Are all professors practicing PAs?