Students enrolled in the UNMC PA program must have completed at least 90 hours of undergraduate work. Most of the 40 students accepted into the program each year have already completed their undergraduate degree, Dr. Somers said. The PA program involves 28 consecutive months of study, including 13 months of academic course work and 15 months of clinical training in preceptorships held throughout the state. In these preceptorships, students train under the guidance of a physician, typically in smaller Nebraska communities. Each preceptorship ranges from one to four months.
PAs practice the art and science of medicine under the general supervision of physicians.
As members of the health-care team, they provide a wide variety of medical care from diagnosing, treating and prescribing for common medical problems to assisting in surgery. They are employed in all types of medical settings and many serve as the only medical provider in small and remote towns. Dr. Somers said UNMC has been able to do a good job of providing PAs for rural Nebraska. He added that 19 of 24 PA students who have graduated from UNMC's Rural Health Opportunities Program are now practicing in rural communities. Another indicator of the quality of the PA program, Dr. Somers said, is the high number of applicants.