Physician Assistant Department Goals

Success in Achieving Goal:

PANCE FIRST TIME - Program History

Average PANCE results of SMU graduates vs national averages in each reported category:

Summary Clinical Preceptor Evaluations of the Class of 2010:

Success in Achieving Goal:

In the 2009/2010 academic year, the SMU PA Department used 82 different instructors during the didactic phase of the program. These faculty demonstrate significant breadth of academic and experiential preparation. More than 85% of the faculty providing instruction during the didactic phase hold either PA (52.4%) or MD (32.9%) degrees. Another 10.9% hold PhD's in disciplines related to their teaching. Nearly 15 per cent (14.6%) of instructional faculty hold other degrees including DPM, PharmD, CNM, OT and FNP. Faculty holding multiple degrees account for percentages in excess of 100%.

Please see program curriculum for more detail.

Success in Achieving Goal:

Training in wide variety of clinical settings

Expansion of Physician Assistant Training Grant (EPAT)

In 2010, the SMU PA Department was awarded $1.23 Million to expand PA training in an effort to place qualified graduates in primary care settings in underserved areas. This grant funds the creation of a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) track in our current program specifically for candidates from the State of Hawaii or one of the HPSA designated counties in Northern California. As a result of this award, we will train an additional 28 Physician Assistants over the next 5 years, each dedicated to the practice of primary care in one of these target areas after graduation.

Please see the online SMU catalog for details about our Health Policy Course which addresses this goal.

Over the last three years, the SMU PA Department has enhanced our presence in the community and the exposure of PA students to different means of delivering care to diverse populations. In this way, we expose students to the issues faced in attempting to deliver health care to those in need and those of diverse backgrounds and promote consideration and discussion of potential solutions to the health care crisis.

Currently SMU PA students participate in a local organization, Kerry's Kids, providing health care to the pediatric population in the homeless shelters of Berkeley and Oakland.

Samuel Merritt University runs a faculty practice at the Davis Street Primary Care Clinic in San Leandro California. At DSPCC, SMU students work in an interprofessional environment providing care to uninsured members of our local community. Currently PA students shadow during two 4-hour sessions each week throughout their didactic phase. This experience provides PA students with the opportunity to see real world applications of the concepts discussed during the didactic phase of the program and is an important adjunct to our didactic course work.

Finally, Samuel Merritt students are actively engaged in community service and medical mission work. In 2011, we will take our 4th and 5th trips to rural western Panama to deliver care with Global Brigades. PA students will join interprofessional teams from across campus to provide care over 3 days of medical brigades. In addition, we will work with physicians, pharmacists, nurses, dentists and other representatives of the Panamanian Ministry of Health who will provide a significant exposure to the health care apparatus in this developing central American country.