Jennifer Strine, PA-C

Precepting is a valuable part of practice for both the active clinician and the student. I believe I would be more inclined to take students on, but I work in a very rural location and my small, personal office is already shared with another provider. Adding a third person to the mix just isn’t feasible. I was approached by my alma mater two days ago, requesting that I take on a student for four months, beginning next week. REALLY???!! I feel bad for that student, I truly do; but I can’t just “fit them in.” 

Personally, I think part of the issue is the number of schools trying to provide PA education. You have a glut of students out there, so time and space for preceptorships is diminishing. I don’t have to get paid to be a preceptor. I just feel that there are too many programs that haven’t done the footwork to establish relationships with their graduates or local/regional PAs and get them invested in precepting the future generations of PAs. Programs add students without maintaining contact with former graduates; it’s important to keep lines of communication open to foster goodwill so we will take on their students.

Fortunately, the students I have precepted were prepared when they came into rotations. However, I have had the displeasure of meeting many twenty-something PA students who do not have a clue how to interact appropriately with patients and are very arrogant in their demeanor. The difference between baby PAs with zero life/medical experience compared to us life veterans who did health care in some other field before becoming PAs is grossly obvious. I’m not a fan of the undergrad-to-PA certification; I would much rather see a PA who has some background in health care and some life/work experience over a newly minted PA without any experience.

I do not think PAs “care less.” We still care a great deal, and more of us would probably precept, but between intense patient caseloads and demand for our time in a multitude of ways, it becomes difficult to “give” that much more. 

Jennifer Strine, PA-C
Thompson Falls, MT

FOR MORE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:
Has the Bar Been Lowered for RN/NP Programs?
Insurance and Billing Qualms Double the Work
Precepting: I Love It, But ...
Preceptor Tax Incentive Program: The Realities

Precepting is a valuable part of practice for both the active clinician and the student. I believe I would be more inclined to take students on, but I work in a very rural location and my small, personal office is already shared with another provider. Adding a third person to the mix just isn’t feasible. I was approached by my alma mater two days ago, requesting that I take on a student for four months, beginning next week. REALLY???!! I feel bad for that student, I truly do; but I can’t just “fit them in.” 

Personally, I think part of the issue is the number of schools trying to provide PA education. You have a glut of students out there, so time and space for preceptorships is diminishing. I don’t have to get paid to be a preceptor. I just feel that there are too many programs that haven’t done the footwork to establish relationships with their graduates or local/regional PAs and get them invested in precepting the future generations of PAs. Programs add students without maintaining contact with former graduates; it’s important to keep lines of communication open to foster goodwill so we will take on their students.

Fortunately, the students I have precepted were prepared when they came into rotations. However, I have had the displeasure of meeting many twenty-something PA students who do not have a clue how to interact appropriately with patients and are very arrogant in their demeanor. The difference between baby PAs with zero life/medical experience compared to us life veterans who did health care in some other field before becoming PAs is grossly obvious. I’m not a fan of the undergrad-to-PA certification; I would much rather see a PA who has some background in health care and some life/work experience over a newly minted PA without any experience.

I do not think PAs “care less.” We still care a great deal, and more of us would probably precept, but between intense patient caseloads and demand for our time in a multitude of ways, it becomes difficult to “give” that much more. 

Jennifer Strine, PA-C
Thompson Falls, MT

FOR MORE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:
Has the Bar Been Lowered for RN/NP Programs?
Insurance and Billing Qualms Double the Work
Precepting: I Love It, But ...
Preceptor Tax Incentive Program: The Realities

Precepting is a valuable part of practice for both the active clinician and the student. I believe I would be more inclined to take students on, but I work in a very rural location and my small, personal office is already shared with another provider. Adding a third person to the mix just isn’t feasible. I was approached by my alma mater two days ago, requesting that I take on a student for four months, beginning next week. REALLY???!! I feel bad for that student, I truly do; but I can’t just “fit them in.” 

Personally, I think part of the issue is the number of schools trying to provide PA education. You have a glut of students out there, so time and space for preceptorships is diminishing. I don’t have to get paid to be a preceptor. I just feel that there are too many programs that haven’t done the footwork to establish relationships with their graduates or local/regional PAs and get them invested in precepting the future generations of PAs. Programs add students without maintaining contact with former graduates; it’s important to keep lines of communication open to foster goodwill so we will take on their students.

Fortunately, the students I have precepted were prepared when they came into rotations. However, I have had the displeasure of meeting many twenty-something PA students who do not have a clue how to interact appropriately with patients and are very arrogant in their demeanor. The difference between baby PAs with zero life/medical experience compared to us life veterans who did health care in some other field before becoming PAs is grossly obvious. I’m not a fan of the undergrad-to-PA certification; I would much rather see a PA who has some background in health care and some life/work experience over a newly minted PA without any experience.

I do not think PAs “care less.” We still care a great deal, and more of us would probably precept, but between intense patient caseloads and demand for our time in a multitude of ways, it becomes difficult to “give” that much more. 

Jennifer Strine, PA-C
Thompson Falls, MT

FOR MORE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:
Has the Bar Been Lowered for RN/NP Programs?
Insurance and Billing Qualms Double the Work
Precepting: I Love It, But ...
Preceptor Tax Incentive Program: The Realities