Neurosurgical PA

[Lyle]

I'm posting as someone from the outside looking in.  I have done a little bit of research and the demand for neurosurgical PAs appears to be high.  I see lots of postings from all across the country looking for neurosurgical PAs, and to me this is good news for someone looking to get into this field.  

Would it be possible to concentrate your work as a PA solely on the OR?  I have seen some exciting opportunities.  For instance I watched a career video, "day in the life" of a PA in a neurosurgical practice, where during the spinal case, the attending did 70% on his side, and the PA finished off the remaining 30%

Could some people who use or see PAs in their practice weigh in?  If the PA is comfortable with their skillset, and most importantly the neurosurgeon or ortho surgeon knows they are competent, home much can they do? Some of those PA jobs that I've noticed only include floor work, admissions and discharge and answering questions fielded to them by patients.  Some of these jobs include that along with OR time.  In my ideal career I would be in the OR most of the time actively assisting with cases.  I understand that on top of the OR there are clinic days, along with morning rounds, and fielding phone calls from patients.  Or would it be possible that OR work be handled by other midlevels, with PAs dedicated to neurosurgery.  

There are also some exciting PA Neurosurgical residencies.  At Duke I believe you can tailor an elective to get exposure to neurosurgery, while the one at Mayo Clinic Arizona is a full year program dedicated to Neurosurgery.   Then there is also the Texas Brain and Spine residency for PAs.  Any thoughts?

[Guest]

nice bait

[Guest]

Dont join a program with residents if you want to do OR.

[Guest]

Your best bet is looking into private positions where they lack residents. There you functionally act as a junior resident helping position, prep, expose, and close for the attending, with greater involvement in spine cases. In this setting you will likely be assigned to a single attending or so which is nice because you’ll learn exactly how they like things. you’ll likely have call responsibilities that involves bolt/evd placements and staffing consults. Likely there will be some element of floor/clinic duities but depends how you negotiate your contract.

[Guest]

Are people really letting midlevels do EVD's? At my residency our midlevels solely do clinic/floor consults and places I have rotated they were just first assists in the OR and didn't do much but retract and close skin.

[Guest]

This may come as a surprise but in the real world residents aren’t trusted to do jack shit

[Guest]

(12-19-2020, 10:30 AM)Guest Wrote: This may come as a surprise but in the real world residents aren’t trusted to do jack shit

ok hopkins resident

[Guest]

(12-19-2020, 10:30 AM)Guest Wrote: This may come as a surprise but in the real world residents aren’t trusted to do jack shit

We have a private hospital where occasionally a (spine-focused) attending does an EVD and then sends the patient to the main hospitals. Those placements are atrocious. PGY1 can do better EVD

[Lyle]

Does anyone have any insight into Mayo Clinic Arizona's Neurosurgical PA residency program?  AFAIK there are not really any residents there, so it seems like a good place for a PA to get focused 1 on 1 training and good exposure to neurosurgery.

[Guest]

If you want to operate so badly and want the prestige of neurosurgery, go to medical school. Can't shortcut.