Goals & successes | Department of Physician Assistant Studies

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NAU’s PA program goals and successes

Compassion, diversity, and quality – valued goals

The mission of the Northern Arizona University Physician Assistant Program is to educate individuals from inclusive backgrounds and lived experiences and graduate physician assistants who provide high quality, compassionate medical care to the people of Arizona.

The goals and progress of the Master of Physician Assistant Studies program at NAU

  • Provide a broad, interdisciplinary medical education including evidence-based practice to facilitate students’ success in dynamic healthcare environments.
    • Rigorous curriculum includes 103 total credits with coursework that integrates current, evidence-based content.
    • Students complete interdisciplinary coursework in the didactic and clinical phases of the curriculum, including Anatomy, and the longitudinal Community Health Mentorship Program.
    • Clinical students experience training in a wide range of dynamic healthcare environments occurring in seven disciplines: Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Women’s Health, Emergency Medicine, Surgery, Mental Health. In addition, students choose one elective rotation.
    • Graduates of the program work in a variety of settings including rural health clinics, federally qualified health centers, community health centers, primary care and specialty practices, emergency departments, and inpatient units.
  • Prepare graduates to practice in diverse settings throughout Arizona, with emphasis on primary care and medically underserved communities.
    • In the most recent academic year, 54.5% of the students’ clinical rotation time (24 weeks) was completed in primary care (family medicine, internal medicine, and pediatrics).
    • The NAU PA program is committed to addressing shortages of health professionals in rural areas. All NAU PA students are part of the Arizona Rural Health Professions Programs (RHPP) which is supported by the Arizona Area Health Education Centers (AzAHEC). This primary care rural and underserved training track prepares graduates to practice in diverse settings throughout Arizona, with emphasis on primary care and medically underserved rural and urban communities.
        • All students complete clinical rotations in rural and/or other underserved settings.
        • Recent data:
           Class of 2023Class of 2022Class of 2021
          # of graduates554848
          # of clinical rotations completed in qualifying rural or other medically underserved setting (% of all rotations)323 (73%)242 (63%)104 (27%)
          Average # of qualifying rotations per student> 5> 5> 2
    • The Rural Health Professions Program is supported through the .
      • In addition to completing RHPP-supported rotations, many students are selected to  participate in the AHEC Scholars Program (ASP) which is also supported by AzAHEC. The ASP is a two-year interprofessional program led by AHEC Regional Centers within the state of Arizona. As part of the program, in addition to completing rotations in underserved settings, students attend monthly didactic seminars – with small groups of students attending different health professions programs – and engage with a select Arizona community to enhance their ability to identify and address the needs of populations in underserved areas. The most recent cohort participation in the ASP is 73%.
      • In 2023, 61% of program clinical training partners were in HRSA-designated Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA), and 73% of clinical rotations were completed at Primary Care (PC) Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) or Medically Underserved Areas (MUA). The NAU PA Program is one of only eight PA Programs nationally housed in Hispanic-Serving Institutions.
  • Utilize technology and innovative teaching strategies to equip students effectively and efficiently with the necessary knowledge, skills, and attitudes to become competent healthcare providers, life-long learners and leaders in their communities.
    • Lecture and laboratory-based courses and clinical rotations are designed to utilize:
      • Technology including simulation, point of care ultrasound (POCUS), learning studios, and other educational resources which equip students to develop skill in performing examinations, clinical procedures and interventions.
      • Innovative teaching strategies including case-based learning activities which enable students to develop problem-solving and medical decision-making skills, group work which fosters the development of interpersonal communication skills, and seminar-based courses which promote lifelong learning and leadership.
      • Integrated principles of health systems science to advance student awareness of strategies to increase access to care, reduce the cost of care, and improve the health of the population.
  • Develop a tradition of excellence in preparing students to successfully complete the national certification examination and serve the people of Arizona.
    • NAU PA Program graduates from the Classes of 2022 and 2023 (two most recent cohorts) have successfully passed the PANCE with a first-time pass rate at or above the national mean.
    • Since the beginning of the program, all cohorts* have had an ultimate pass rate of 100%. *Class of 2023 ultimate pass rate is currently 96% (some graduates have remaining attempts.

      Note: the Exam Performance Summary Report shows 98% ultimate pass rate for Class of 2021 which reflects a graduate who will not complete the examination due to personal circumstances.

      NAU graduates serving the people of Arizona:
       Class of 2023Class of 20222014-present
      Total graduates55
      		48441
      Arizona40 (73%)38 (79%)345 (78%)
      Out-of-State9 (16%)10 (21%)89 (20%)
      Unknown6 (11%)-10 (2%)

  • Develop staff members with a commitment to excellence in service to students, faculty and the community.
    • Staff members engage in numerous activities in service to:
      • Students: provide administrative support for courses, clinical rotations, coordinate events and wellness activities, and others.
      • Faculty: provide administrative support for teaching, scholarship, and service, organize appreciation events, attend and participate in department meetings and committee service, and others.
      • Community: conduct open houses, tours, health and wellness events, and others.
      • Staff are actively engaged and supported in pursuing professional development. The College of Health and Human Services (CHHS) hosts annual Staff retreats, where all staff travel to Flagstaff for professional development and wellness activities.
      • Staff and faculty are recognized for their contributions in the biweekly CHHS Newsletter. In addition, NAU recognizes staff contributions annually at the NAU Staff and Faculty Awards.
  • Develop faculty with a commitment to excellence in teaching, scholarship and service.
    • Faculty members engage in numerous activities demonstrating their commitment to excellence in:
      • Teaching: within the program and as invited guest speakers to other programs.
        • PA faculty perform above the university mean in instructional performance.
          • Fall 2023: PHA courses 3.9 (NAU 3.7)
      • Scholarship: poster projects, publications, research, and others.
        • Faculty members are actively engaged in mentoring PA students in academic and scholarly endeavors.
      • Service: program, college and university committees, local and national organization membership and leadership roles, and others.
    • Faculty are actively engaged and supported in pursuing professional development.

 

Success by the numbers Accordion Closed
  • Of our first graduating class of 2014 (N=24), 96% took their first job in Arizona, 65% took their first job in primary care, and 52% took their first job in a medically underserved or rural community.
  • In our second graduating class of 2015 (N=24), 88% took their first job in Arizona, 54% took their first job in primary care, and 46% took their first job in a medically underserved or rural community.
  • Combining data from the first two classes of graduates (N=48), 92% took their first job in Arizona, 58% took their first job in primary care, and 48% took their first job in a medically underserved or rural community.
  • The 24 graduates of the Class of 2014 attained a 96% first time pass rate on the Physician Assistant National Certifying Exam (PANCE).
  • The 24 graduates of the Class of 2015 also attained a 96% first time pass rate on the PANCE, and all 48 NAU PA program graduates have passed the PANCE and are practicing as PAs.
  • The NAU PA Program had an attrition rate of 4% (1 student) in each of the first two graduating cohorts, less than half of the national average deceleration/withdrawal/dismissal rate of 9.2%.
Department of Physician Assistant Studies
Location
Building
Health Sciences Education Building
435 N. 5th Street
Phoenix, AZ 85004