January

FPA president’s activity

In January, FPA president Kate Straughton spoke at the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) Medicine 2021 conference. Kate joined the career focussed panel discussion alongside other healthcare professionals to showcase the PA role.

During the month, Kate also attended the national physician associate and anesthesia associate prescribing stakeholder group and presented the FPA draft Case in Need to the group. The group is made up of government representatives across the four nations, as well as NHS England and other national bodies, Royal Medical College representatives, and colleagues from PA Schools Council. This group needs to agree on the Case in Need before we can ultimately present it to the Commission for Human Medicines, once we are regulated. The draft was positively received, and we continue to work towards our final version.

Kate also represented the FPA and the PA profession at several other meetings, with General Medical Council, Health Education and Improvement Wales, MAPS development groups, and a global PA meeting to discuss collaborative working across the globe.

FPA members

We began the year with 2,139 qualified PA members. Check back when our December highlight is live to see how the profession has grown throughout 2021.

Virtual AGM

2021 was the first year the FPA annual general meeting (AGM) was held entirely online. Almost 200 members joined Kate Straughton and the other FPA Board members who reflected on the Faculty’s progress and achievements during 2020, celebrated PA excellence over the previous year and shared their aims and objectives for the year ahead, with more PAs catching up on RCP player after the event. This year, the AGM will once again be held online to ensure everyone’s safety, so do keep an eye on your inboxes for more information in due course.

February

FPA curriculum

Work began on the FPA curriculum, which will be approved by the General Medical Council post-regulation and will form the high-level structure to which PA courses adhere. Work has continued on this curriculum throughout 2021, with a consultation in the Autumn. Keep an eye on the newsletter as we go into 2022 to be able to view the curriculum once finalised. It is expected courses will begin using it from September 2023.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT+) History Month

FPA members shared their stories in celebration of LGBT+ History Month.

Brad Sewell is the UK’s first PA to work in sexual and reproductive health. He used his story to share how his experiences as part of the LGBTQ+ community help him to inform his clinical practice.

Primary and secondary care PA James Catton discussed that he actively promotes the NHS Rainbow Badge Scheme. James shared how promoting the campaign prompted several conversations among his patients about their struggles with their sexuality or gender identity.

We’re seeking PA and PA student FPA members who wish to share their stories in support of LGBT+ month in February 2022. If you would like to learn more or express your interest contact, FPA communications officer Jenna Donaldson – [email protected].

March

Health Education England (HEE) – Core Capabilities Framework

As part of the HEE MAPs Career Framework development, which has been in progress since 2014, HEE commissioned Skills for Health to support the development of a Core Capabilities Framework.

In March, a project steering group was formed. It included experienced clinical practitioners, NHS Bodies, Royal colleges, and professional bodies. Three members of the FPA were part of this group, offering expertise and guidance around the PA role in both primary and secondary care. The group was responsible for the development of the competencies, which identify and describe the skills and knowledge which MAPs need to apply to deliver safe, high-quality, compassionate, personalised care. It provides a single, consistent, comprehensive, and explicit reference standard on which to base, review and develop the role of MAPs professionals working across the full range of clinical services. The framework became open for consultation later in the year – look out for it our highlights.

CPD year end

March also marks the CPD year end. It won’t be long until this time comes around again (just months to go). Using the CPD diary app offers ease and flexibility and why not use the Christmas break to bring your CPD up to date so you’re prepared for the year-end in March?

PA school’s council conference

The PA Schools Council Educators’ virtual conference also took place. The FPA presented a poster, which displayed our continued prescribing work.

April

April saw the FPA continuing work on multiple projects. Meetings with the General Medical Council, the Health Education England PA working group, and the MAPs Oversight group ensured that we were kept up to date and were able to engage with work going on around the country regarding the PA profession.

The areas outlined included regulation, career progression, development across the devolved nations, amongst others. FPA president, Kate represents the FPA at the RCP PA National Exam Development Group. This group also has two independent PAs involved and discusses strategies for maintaining the robustness of the exam and ensuring it continues to develop and improve.

Senior examiner appointed

Jade Moore was appointed as senior PA examiner for three years. Since her appointment, Jade has been involved in multiple exciting projects, including working with all question writing groups, the PA development group, and the education board at the RCP.

Speaking about her appointment, Jade said: ‘’it is a very exciting time to be a PA, and I feel very privileged to be working as a representative in the senior examiner role. Working with the different groups has enabled me to understand the robust processes involved in the national PA examination and the continual cycle of review of these processes has been something I have been able to actively contribute to.’’

May

First PA exam diet at RCP The Spine

The first physician associate (PA) National Exam diet to take place at the RCP’s new Northern home, The Spine, ran successfully in May. The new assessment floor inside the building was created to provide a calming environment for candidates. Floor 11 features full-height windows, offering natural light to ease what can be a stressful experience, as well as clear progression around the OSCE circuit. If you’re currently preparing for your PA national or clinical examination in January 2022, FPA Board member Alexandra Chase’s top tips may help you to get prepared.

Physician associates in Northern Ireland event

Ulster University arranged an event for physician associates (PAs) in Northern Ireland – a look to the future, aimed at informing potential supervisors and employers about the role, understanding the progression, and how PAs can be utilised. FPA president, Kate Straughton was invited to speak at the event, alongside many others to discuss the future of the PA profession. The event was a real success, and we remain supportive of our PA colleagues across all 4 devolved nations.

British Association of Urological Surgeons

May also saw us begin to work with the British Association of Urological Surgeons (BAUS), to initiate some discussions about the post-qualification curriculum and how BAUS might be able to support the PA profession in its development. This work remains ongoing, and we look forward to showcasing our collaborative ideas in 2022. 

June

President visits The Grange hospital

FPA president, Kate Straughton had the privilege of accompanying senior colleagues from the Royal College of Physicians on a virtual hospital visit and heard from physician associates (PAs) working at the Trust.  During what was a difficult time in healthcare, Kate was humbled to learn how they were able to work together supporting each other and the medical team to continue to provide high-quality patient care. Doctors at all levels had nothing but positivity for the PA profession, stating that PAs were an essential part of the team.  

Regulation Reform

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) consultation on regulation reform ran during June. This regulatory reform is looking to align the healthcare regulators across the UK and ensure that there is a more simplified, universal approach. PA regulation (alongside that of anaesthesia associates) comes in as part of this reform. The FPA responded to this consultation, ensuring that the PA view was represented, as well as encouraging individuals to respond with their own ideas and concerns.

General Medical Council (GMC) announcement

The General Medical Council (GMC) shared its response to the Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC) consultation on regulatory reform, which included the proposal for the framework that PAs will adopt when the profession becomes regulated.

June was a busy month for our longer-term projects around regulation, career development, and prescribing. Work continued on the MAPs career framework, national level updates at the HEE working group, and further feedback from NHS England and NHS Improvement on the prescribing case of need, before presenting to the Prescriber Stakeholder Group for further discussion about next steps. 

July

Presidents’ regulation update

President, Kate Straughton shared an update on the road to PA regulation in the Royal College of Physicians membership magazine, Commentary. The article outlined the journey to regulation and showcased the benefits of the PA profession to wider college colleagues.

Census 2020 report released

The FPA census is the largest annual survey of physician associates (PAs) and PA students. The 2020 report showcased that over 300 new PAs joined the profession in just one year. The report also revealed that PAs felt they were working under extreme pressure. To help explore this further and to maintain the health and wellbeing of our members, FPA president Kate Straughton held a series of wellbeing focus groups with FPA members. The sessions allowed PAs to share their concerns and what they felt would help support this in the future. Additional opportunities to join such sessions will be available in the future.

In the meantime, the 2021 FPA census remains open until 10 December. All members will have received a personalised email link to complete their responses. If you haven’t received this. Contact [email protected].

FPA Board activity

A series of global articles about the PA profession was published in the Social Innovations Journal, Kate Straughton and Alexandra Chase were responsible for the UK component. The publication of the journal coincided with a virtual international conference organised by The Network: Towards Unity for Health (TUFH), at which Kate took part in a ‘Meet the Authors’ event.

It is an important part of our strategy to engage with our international colleagues – to understand more about the role in other countries, but also to ensure collaborative working on projects that may be beneficial to all. 

August

South Asian Heritage Month

In support and celebration of South Asian Heritage Month, three FPA members shared their life stories, including their journey to entering medicine and becoming PAs. Anusha Francis discussed how her South Asian heritage helped to influence and shape her into the person and physician associate (PA) she is today.

Growing up in Sri Lanka, PA Max Perera initially trained a nurse. He shared his life story including, an insight into taking the leap to move his family to England and becoming a PA.

Finally, primary care PA, Sofia Mughal told us about how her Pakistani heritage helped shape her life and career. Having originally focussed on a career in medical research, Sofia later discovered her passion for clinical medicine and became a PA.

We will be supporting PAs and PA students willing to share their stories in celebration of South Asian Heritage month in 2022. It is never too early to register your interest – get in touch with FPA communications officer, Jenna Donaldson – [email protected].

Health Education England (HEE) – Core Capabilities Framework

The Health Education England’s Core Capabilities Framework was released for online consultation to a wider range of organisations and individuals. All FPA members were notified in a monthly newsletter and encouraged to submit their responses.

FPA Curriculum

FPA Curriculum work continued, with the curriculum being prepared to be ready for consultation. This document was sent out for consultation by the General Medical Council (GMC), alongside a number of other education and assessment related documents in Autumn. The Curriculum group, a combination of physician associates (PAs), PA educators, representatives from the GMC, and colleagues from the Royal College of Physicians worked incredibly hard to produce a document that was up to date and reflected the outcomes which a PA student should be achieving at the point of qualification. The curriculum is not quite finalised at this point but requires one last stage of editing following the feedback from the GMC consultation. 

September

Specialty spotlight

September marked the launch of our FPA specialty spotlight, using the voice of our fantastic FPA members to showcase the physician associate (PA) profession across a range of specialties. Thus far, the spotlight has been shone on PAs in sexual health, urology, and a wide scope of surgical specialties. You can read our member’s individual stories below.

-          Brad Sewell – sexual health

-          Derrin Jarvis – urology

-          Alice Gissell – urology surgery

-          Stephanie Kerr – paediatric plastic surgery

Thank you to all FPA members who have willingly shared their stories with us. Still, to come in 2022 we have PAs in primary care, emergency and critical care, and cardiology. As always, we are keen for more members to get involved and share their stories. If you want to showcase your skills, experience, and reasons for becoming a PA, get in touch with FPA communications officer, Jenna Donaldson – [email protected].

PA poster competition celebrations

We were delighted to announce that PA student, Elizabeth Hickman won the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) eastern regional poster competition after the judges were left extremely impressed by her poster and presentation entitled ‘Could the use of an age-adjusted D-Dimer reduce the number of unnecessary radiological interventions carried out within the trust?'

Qualified PA, Beth Norman, is the lead PA at Yeovil District Hospital and came highly commended in the RCP South West regional poster competition. Beth was the lead author of her poster entitled ‘Surprise’ Ward-Based Simulations: a means to increase fidelity and inter-professional engagement?’ Both Elizabeth and Beth’s achievements are a fantastic display of how PAs are contributing to research.

First online PA national exam diet

Another first during 2021 for our examination team. Not only did the first PA OSCE examinations take place at RCP The Spine earlier in the year, but the first written exam took place online. This new method of assessment allowed for those hoping to qualify to become a PA, as well as those recertifying, to take the examination at home. Speaking about the diet, RCP’s assessment unit said ‘The move to online examinations represented a significant milestone for the RCP as online assessment offers many advantages for both the College and the candidate. It allowed the candidates the flexibility and reduced costs in relation to exam location, whilst allowing the College increased options in terms of delivery and data collection and analysis, leading to increasingly robust and dynamic assessments.’

Congratulations to all PAs who passed during this examination diet and good luck to those soon to be sitting their national exam online in January 2022.

The Good Medical Practice advisory group 

The Good medical practice (GMP) advisory group is reviewing the current GMP which was published in 2013. GMP is the core guidance that doctors in the UK must follow, post regulation PAs will also follow. It shapes the way patients are cared for by describing the values and behaviors they must show. Since the publication patients’ expectations and the way medical professions deliver care have evolved. This review will make sure GMP is relevant and realistic for the future.

Mikaela Carey, FPA Board member joins a panel of healthcare leaders and patient advocates. For more information, please sign up to the community of interest here. 

October

PA Week

This year, we wanted to make PA week the best one yet and encouraged physician associate (PAs), PA students, PA employers, colleagues of PAs, patients of PAs, and PAs of the future to share what makes them #PAandproud and #ProudofPAs. We received over 150 responses to our campaigns and were overwhelmed with the level of pride, thanks, and celebration that surrounds the profession. We extend our gratitude to everyone who got involved – see you in 2022.

Black History Month

Three FPA members came together to celebrate Black History Month. They shared the importance of diversity within the PA profession and what it means to them. Catch up on each story below:

-          Debbie Jegede  

-          Marcia Hylton

-          Taneil Lee

It’s also never too early to register your interest in getting involved to share your story. If you would like to support Black History Month during 2022, register your interest by emailing FPA communications officer, Jenna Donaldson – [email protected].

FPA members area

We saw the launch of our exclusive new member’s only area. The area is open to all qualified FPA members and features, exclusive guidance documents, and an improved PA toolkit, along with plenty more. If you haven’t already signed up, do so today and start making the most of the exclusive benefits.

General Medical Council (GMC) released Good Medical Practice statement

Good medical practice interim standards were released by the General Medical Council
(GMC) for PAs. While the guidance won’t come into effect until the profession becomes regulated, we encourage PAs to become familiar with the standards and begin using them now. These standards were also discussed at a session around Professionalism at the FPA virtual conference, which is discussed in more detail in November’s section. The session can still be viewed online for those who registered for the FPA virtual conference. If you were not able to join us last month, there is still time to register for on demand access by visiting the conference website.

Conservative Party Conference – FPA representation

President, Kate Straughton attended the conference, roundtable discussion with a number of senior representatives from Royal Medical Colleges and MPS about the future of the NHS. Kate discussed the PA role, making sure that the message was clearly delivered about who PAs are, where they work, what they do as well as some of the current issues facing the profession.  The discussion was able to further showcase the benefit PAs bring to the healthcare workforce, as well as having a frank and open conversation about needing to ensure that regulation and prescribing for the profession are required, and as soon as possible, to help drive the profession forward but also to be able to work to our full potential to support patients and their care.

November

FPA virtual conference

We hosted a virtual FPA virtual conference that saw over 800 delegates attend. There were numerous opportunities for physician associates (PAs) to enhance their learning, gain new knowledge and connect with fellow PAs in interactive sessions. All delegates can still catch up on all conference sessions for 60 days via logging into their conference accounts. If you did not register for the conference, you can still do so until 25 January 2022. All newly registered delegates will have access to on demand content until 24 February 2022.

New FPA Board members  

Our newly elected FPA Board members joined us. Our FPA Board members are our executive team and are key to helping drive forward FPA activity and the representation of our members. Newly appointed to the Board are:

-          Amy Donaldson-Perrot

-          Pauline Weir

Both Amy and Pauline are fantastic PAs and bring a wealth of experience across primary care, emergency medicine and education. We look forward to working closely with them over their next four years in post.

Devolved nations group introduced

We’ve also introduced the newly created devolved nations group. The new group and its representatives will be working towards ensuring that all four nations are represented that there is parity in the PA profession across the UK. We will work with our new representatives to improve communication, share concerns, and make sure that what we are doing supports the entire PA profession. Elected to join this new group is:

-          Sophie Macdonald – Scotland

-          Alexandra Wolley – Wales

-          Lia McNamee – Northern Ireland 

Physician associate representative on the Royal College of Physicians Patient Saftey Committee 

The Royal College of Physicians Patient Safety Committee works to improve the safety of patients who receive care from RCP fellows and members. The committee meets three times a year and has representatives from the RCP, specialty societies, and other royal colleges. Physician associate (PA) Mathilde Richou was appointed to the group as PA representative in November, along with Antonia Harris who is the deputy PA representative. Both will begin their induction process in January 2022 and attend their first meeting in early March 2022. 

December

FPA members

If you’ve been following all flashbacks, you will have read that we began the year with 2,139 qualified physician associates (PA) members. We’re delighted to announce that we’re ending 2021 with 2,798 qualified FPA members. That’s a growth of over 650 new PAs!

FPA team activity

December continues to be a busy month, with our final FPA Board meeting and stakeholder meeting of the year, alongside other meetings with Health Education England, General Medical Council, Physician Associate schools Council, and more. We are really looking forward to being able to take a breath over the Christmas break, before coming back in 2022 to continue to work on all of our on-going projects – finalising the FPA curriculum and the Medical Associate Professions career framework, working towards regulation and prescribing. We will also be publishing the 2021 census, continuing to develop our member support via the website, our FPA inbox where we manage your queries, and our new member area, as well as a few other surprises too.

We would like to extend our thanks and send our well wishes to you all. The FPA is run by PAs for PAs and it is a pleasure to have you on the journey with us. We understand that Christmas time will still be very busy for many of you. If that’s you, we salute you for being there for those who need it most over the festive period. Remember to look after yourself too, and we look forward to experiencing more highlights with you throughout 2022.