• Home
  • Degrees
  • Schools
  • Ranking News
  • Financial Aid
  • About
    • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact Us

Outstanding Colleges

Find the Best College for you!

  • Home
  • Degrees
  • Schools
  • Ranking News
  • Financial Aid
  • About
    • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact Us

July 3, 2018

The Difference Between PA and MD

The Difference Between PA and MD

If you are thinking of going into health care, there are numerous different routes you can take. The two most popular occupations in healthcare are a medical doctor (MD) and physician assistant (PA). We will help distinguish the difference between the two so you have a better understanding of them.

Becoming an MD

Becoming a doctor is not easy, it requires years of education and practice. You start off by getting a degree of 4 years from an undergraduate school and then spend another 2 years to get your MD. Your learning doesn’t stop there, you have to invest another 3 to 7 years to gain experience as a residency, training so you can get your license to surgery or medicine.

Becoming a PA

Becoming a PA is not easy but doesn’t require as many years of education as a doctor. You need to get an undergraduate degree of 4 years and then complete a Physician Assistant program which usually lasts 25 months. Then you need a year of practice in a clinical rotation before you get your license.

When it comes to education as both an MD and PA, learning never stops. You need to constantly take classes even after you have obtained your license.

How the two differ in functions

While both PA and MD share the responsibility of providing care for to the patient, a PA works under the supervision of the doctor. The duties of a PA include:

  • Examination of patient

  • Diagnoses

  • Getting patient’s history

  • Carrying out treatment

  • Counseling patients as far as healthcare plans go

  • Suturing wounds

A PA and doctors job may overlap but when it comes to surgery and providing more intensive care to patients, the doctor takes care of those. Doctors work completely autonomous unlike PA’s which work under the doctor’s supervision.

Article by Jon Haver / Health & Medicine / difference between pa and md Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Meet The Team

Kristy Feldman (Senior Editor)

Kristy studied economics at McGill University and then got her masters in Journalism from UC Berkley.Currently she is a freelance writer focusing on the college ranking and student loan industries.
Joe Kazan (Web Design & Marketing):

Joe is the man that makes the website run. He is also the face of the website with his natural interest in college rankings and student loans. He is the one who answers questions, comments and engages the community around OutstandingColleges.com
Prof. Mike King (Adviser / Contributor)

Mike is a retired college professor and administrator. He knows the admission and college ranking industry inside and out after 30 years in the industry.

Pages

  • Home
  • Degrees
  • Schools
  • Ranking News
  • Financial Aid
  • About
    • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact Us

RSS College Ranking News

  • You Still Have Time To Enter The District 9 VFW BBQ Cookoff - News/Talk 790 KFYO
  • Miami University: Miami Ranks In The Top 50 As One Of The Nation's "Best Value Public Colleges" - Patch.com
  • College Admission Conquest: Words Matter - Forbes
  • Is India Ready For Home Schooling? - Forbes India
  • NEP 2020: Why Odisha’s Khallikote Cluster University fell apart - Careers360

Recent Posts

  • Does Australia Boast of the Best Student Loan Repayment Program in The World?
  • Best Air Traffic Controller School and Degree Programs in 2020
  • The Best Real Estate Degree for Becoming an Agent
  • The 10 Hardest College Majors
  • Rhodes College Overall Rankings – Profile and Data

Archive

  • August 2020
  • January 2020
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • November 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014

Pages

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • School Listings
  • Sitemap
  • Terms & Conditions

Categories

  • Accounting
  • Best XRay Tech Schools
  • Business and MBA
  • Degrees
  • Financial Aid
  • Health & Medicine
  • Medical Billing & Coding
  • News
  • Nursing
  • Ophthalmology
  • Ranking News
  • Schools
  • Science & Engineering
  • Trades & Careers
  • Travel Agent

Copyright © 2021 · Education Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.