Becker's Hospital Review

85 CMO / CARE DELIVERY Why PAs aren't using the term 'physician associate' yet By Mackenzie Bean T he American Academy of Physician Assistants has of- ficially changed its name to the American Academy of Physician Associates as part of a larger rebranding ef- fort for the profession, but the association is not advising PAs to use the new term in a professional capacity yet. Last May, the AAPA voted to adopt "physician associate" as the official title for the PA profession. The change came about three years after the academy hired a healthcare marketing research and branding firm to determine the best title and marketing strategy for the profession. "Changing the title addresses a common misperception that PAs only 'assist' physicians, when in fact PAs are highly edu- cated medical professionals who provide value in delivering high-quality, team-based healthcare," a spokesperson for AAPA told Becker's, noting that 71 percent of patients and 61 percent of physicians agreed the term better matches a PA's job description in a survey conducted by Kantar Research. News of the rebranding was met with opposition from several medical groups, including the American Medical Association and American Osteopathic Association. The groups argued that the new term would confuse patients, undermine the physician-led care team model and violate state laws regard- ing truth in advertising. While AAPA has officially rebranded, the organization is not recommending PAs use the term in clinical practice yet, per guidance from its legal counsel. "PAs should continue to use 'physician assistant' or 'PA' as their official legal title in a professional capacity, particular- ly in clinical settings and with patients, until the jurisdiction governing their licensure and practice has formally adopted the title of 'physician associate,'" the association said in a fre- quently asked questions page on its website. The group said updating the profession's legal title at the state and federal levels will be a long-term process, and that it will continue to use both terms across its website and digital platforms. "Title change implementation is a complex undertaking that will take time to wholly implement," AAPA said. "Given the number of platforms and assets to be updated, the variety of audiences they reach, as well as legal considerations, it is expected that both terms (physician assistant and physician associate) will be used on the website for years." Keep up to date with the AAPA's latest rebranding actions here. Editor's note: This article was updated June 10 at 11:00 a.m. CT. n "One of the most powerful antidotes to burnout is engagement, and it actually doesn't take a lot of engagement to mitigate burnout," said Penn Medicine's Dr. Bellini. Dr. West directs Mayo Clinic's physician well-being program within the department of medicine, which is based on a clinical trial conducted in 2014. e program involves group discussions of six to 10 physicians who meet for an hour to discuss a topic that is broadly relevant to the physician experience, such as work-life balance or job satisfaction. Physicians can sign up for a six-month long session and the goal, according to Dr. West, is to meet once a week for an hour. Mayo Clinic pays for the physicians to share a meal during the engagement sessions. Findings from the research on Mayo's approach "showed it actually reduced burnout, produced meaning at work," Dr. West said, adding that more than 50 percent of physicians sign up for at least one six-month block of this session, with most signing up for multiple iterations. Banner Health sponsors structured activities a few times a year to foster social connection among physicians as part of its Cultivating Happiness in Medicine program. e activities can be led by any physician or advanced practice provider in the organization. "It's a structured activity where we ask them to talk about a certain topic," Dr. Bessel said. e discussion is coupled with a social activity of the group's choice. ey've included team lunches, paint by numbers and outdoor exercise-related activities. Many of the activities were conducted virtually at different points throughout the pandemic. "It's really well-received. Even during the pandemic, 50 percent of those physicians and APPs that are within our employment arena participated in at least one activity during the year," Dr. Bessel said. It's not oen half of an organization's physicians participate in a voluntary activity, so "it must be hitting the mark," Dr. Bessel said. Efforts are also being made to prioritize connection on the education side. "We are working on changing our model to include more learning communities, dividing our students into smaller groups where they have group mentoring and more group learning and relaxation space," Emily Walvoord, MD, associate dean for student affairs at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis, told Becker's. At the very least, healthcare organizations should bring renewed attention to communicating the importance of workplace connections, Dr. West said. "One of the first big things that needs to happen is that practices, organizations and individual physicians have to be reminded — and have to remind themselves — that connection is important; that it's not just about our relationships with our patients, although those are at the center of what we do. We also need to share success stories" he said. n

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