News Central

On one late Sunday night, 19 victims of a mass shooting in Baltimore, Maryland came to MedStar Harbor Hospital, a small community hospital, for care. Mohammad Faisal, an emergency medicine PA, walks through the events of the night, reflecting on how he and other providers worked together to stabilize every patient and transfer some of them to trauma centers for further care.

As a PA student on the Big Island in Hawaii, Kaleo Lee learned about the devastation caused by the wildfires in Maui—only an island away from him—and knew he had to do something. Along with his classmates, Lee started a donation drive and flew to Maui to help distribute items to those affected by the fires.

PA students Katie Holliday, Elijah Netjes, and Sydney Smith jumped at the opportunity to serve their clinical rotation abroad and traveled to Point of Grace Academy, a boarding school that houses approximately 800 students near Kisumu, Kenya. There, they immersed themselves in the culture, treated hundreds of community members of all ages, taught a class, and had an unforgettable experience.

PA Jenna Everett is the clinical lead for the Multi-Visit Patient Program at MedStar Harbor Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, which focuses on providing resources and support to underserved patients who frequently visit the emergency department for care. Everett talks about how she became passionate about providing care to undeserved communities, and how addressing patients’ unmet social needs can ultimately make it easier for them to obtain medical care.

With a remarkable journey that led him to positions at the White House and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Bernard Toney Jr., DMSc, MPH, PA-C defied all odds and surpassed everyone’s expectations, including his own.

The American Academy of PAs (AAPA) submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the federal agency that oversees the Medicare program, in response to the 2024 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) proposed rule. The rule recommends numerous changes to Medicare’s coverage and payment policies that impact PAs, physicians and other health professionals.

Nine in 10 adults across 10 states support updating physician associate/assistant (PA) practice laws to allow healthcare systems to fully utilize their workforce, according to a collection of state surveys conducted by The Harris Poll.

After her personal experience with obesity, PA Ledyenska “Ledyi” Baez Ballesteros launched an obesity medicine program to serve her primarily Hispanic patient population in San Antonio, Texas. Ballesteros talks about how the way we look at obesity medicine has changed, how she structures her program, and the adaptations she makes to better serve her patients.