Advancing Physician Assistant Faculty Development: A New Model.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Physician Assistant Studies
• Faculty Development

Background:

• The demand for skilled faculty in Physician Assistant (PA) education necessitates innovative training models.
• Existing PA programs require robust faculty pipelines to meet accreditation standards and educational needs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To detail the creation, execution, and assessment of a novel faculty development program for Physician Assistants.
• To establish a scalable model for enhancing faculty capacity within PA programs.

Main Methods:

• Development of a 10-month fellowship by the Maryland Physician Assistant Leadership and Learning Academy (PALLA).
• Framework based on PA educator competencies, the three pillars of academia, and accreditation standards.
• Evaluation via multiple surveys assessing self-perceived impact and achievement of fellowship goals.

Main Results:

• All fellowship learning activities successfully met participants' expectations.
• Fellows reported strong self-perceived achievement in attaining the program's outcome objectives.
• The training demonstrated positive self-perceived impact on clinicians transitioning to academic roles.

Conclusions:

• Formal faculty development programs enhance the self-perceived competence of clinicians entering academia.
• The PALLA fellowship model offers a replicable strategy for other states to build PA faculty capacity.
• Investing in faculty development is crucial for maintaining and advancing the quality of PA education.