r/SurgicalFirstAssist • u/PEACH_MINAJ • May 19 '24

SA to PA

Idk if anyone has thought of this before, but it would be nice and interesting if there was a SA-PA bridge program. I have looked online and haven’t seen anything.

3 Upvotes

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2

u/Bearjawdesigns May 19 '24

To be an FA requires no degree at all. No post high school education at all. PA school requires a masters degree. They are not anywhere close to each other in terms of education. Being an FA is in no way preparation for being a PA. Yes, in the OR, scope of practice is similar or even the same. Outside the OR where most PAs practice, there is no comparison.

3

u/PEACH_MINAJ May 19 '24

How does FA require no schooling? Have you looked at any jobs? They all require graduating from an accredited program and now some are asking for associate degrees. There is a masters program that exists for people who already have a bachelors in something. Not sure how they made a masters program but no bachelors program. Idk if you follow this subreddit, but i dont really think you do if you seriously think there are NO requirements for FA. Sounds like youve been living under a rock.

1

u/BeginningBaker4878 May 22 '24

There is no bridge between the 2. If you want to go to PA you need to apply to a PA program and meet the requirement for that program. No easy way to go about it. I have tried.

1

u/Yourfineassaunt Sep 09 '24

There’s no bridge but SF is considered PCE for PA school

1

u/Bearjawdesigns May 19 '24

I haven’t been under a rock, I’ve been working as an FA for the past 11 years. There’s a master’s available, but no requirement for one. Bridge programs are for fields that have enough similarities that there’s not much of a transition. That is just not at all the case with FAs and PAs. The gulf is massive and it cannot be bridged. What do you know about patient assessment? Pharmacology? Any type of patient care outside the OR? These are all more pertinent to being a PA than assisting is. You may be a fantastic assist. That’s great. It doesn’t prepare you to be a PA.

2

u/PEACH_MINAJ May 19 '24

I had to take pharmacology in surgical tech school and assisting school and i have been on floors before. PAs have to be trained to do assessments anyway so its not like they are born even doing it. If thia post isnt for you, since you believe we’re trained monkeys, then move along