October 6 – 12 is Physician Assistant Week, an opportunity to celebrate the dedicated physician assistants that make great care accessible for millions of patients every day.
Collectively, physician assistants (PAs) see more than 500 million patients in the U.S. each year, and their role within the modern healthcare system is only projected to grow in the coming years.
PAs participate in a wide range of areas across the continuum of patient care, conducting exams, diagnosing illnesses, making treatment plans, and prescribing medication with skill and expertise. Their robust medical knowledge equips them to treat a wide variety of patients across many areas of medicine, including general surgery, family medicine, pediatrics, psychiatry, and many more. This training enables hospitals and clinics to meet the care demands of their communities, shortening wait times and giving patients more face-to-face time with providers they know and trust.
In addition to earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees, PAs must complete a minimum of 2,000 supervised clinical hours before passing the rigorous Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE) exam to earn certification. PAs must also complete continuing medical education throughout their career and pass recertification at regular intervals.
Meet our Physician Assistants
At McCamey County Hospital District, PAs help us provide exceptional and personable care across multiple services at our hospital and the McCamey Rural Health Clinic.
Noah Sandusky, PA-C works at the McCamey Rural Health Clinic. Noah earned his bachelor's degree in kinesiology from the University of North Texas, where he also worked as a sports medicine clinical research assistant. He went on to earn his master’s from the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth.
Noah is a certified physician assistant with clinical experience in family medicine, orthopedics, wound care, and general surgery.
John Adams, PA-C works in our emergency department. John served in the U.S. army for nine years as a medic before becoming a registered nurse and earning his certification in emergency nursing (CEN). John became a PA after graduating from the PA program at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
John is a certified physician assistant with experience working in health clinics, emergency departments, and radiology. He holds certifications in BCLS (basic cardiac life support), ACLS (advanced cardiovascular life support, PALS (pediatric advanced life support), and ATLS (advanced trauma life support).
Take a moment this week to thank our skilled PAs for their expertise and dedication to providing great care in McCamey!
