Clinical Education


AAPA's Education Council is dedicated to ensuring that PAs have the appropriate knowledge, skills and abilities to deliver the highest quality patient care.

Information about Professional Competence and Clincial Competencies

The Institute of Medicine's report on the future of health professions education lists five core competencies in which all health care providers should be proficient:

  • providing patient-oriented care
  • working in interdisciplinary teams
  • practicing evidence-based medicine
  • applying quality improvement approaches
  • using information technologies

Similarly, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) has identified six competencies it believes that medical residents should attain during their training:

  • Patient care, including clinical reasoning
  • Medical knowledge
  • Practice-based learning and improvement (including information management)
  • Interpersonal and communication skills
  • Professionalism
  • System-based practice

The Center for Innovation at the National Board of Medical Examiners is developing a comprehensive list of The Behaviors of Professionalism.

AAPA papers on competence:


Education Council Papers and Briefs


Link to Information About PAs and the PA Profession

Link to other PA education organizations: