South West (Peninsula)

It’s been a busy few months in the background preparing for the first session of the FPA presidential tour. I was delighted to welcome over 30 PAs from the south west (Peninsula) region on 10 February.

I want to extend my thanks to everyone who took the time to join us – pets and babies included. Your attendance and interaction during the session were very much appreciated, and I welcomed hearing about the challenges you face and how within the FPA we can help address them!

We were also joined by FPA board members, Jamie Saunders, Mikaela Carey, Pauline Weir, and FPA vice president Michelle Chapman. For those who couldn’t join us, or from within other regions some of the hot topics we discussed included:

• Career progression – we chatted at length about progression, including what progression PAs are expecting to be available. We also discussed the future career framework, what will it involve, and how it will benefit our profession, as well as topics such as prescribing and imaging.
• Educating PA supervisors and wider colleagues – it was clear that the region would benefit from employers being educated on the abilities of PAs. We are committing to review how we communicate with employers and supervisors to make sure that we are reinforcing the message about PA scope of practice and progression, as well as supporting you to bring up the topics with your seniors what your capabilities are and keeping a log of evidence to share.
• Clinical progression – FPA board member, Jamie shared how he records all his clinical progression, procedures, and skills regularly. A fantastic way to maintain a constant record of the skills he’s gained and a way to reflect on how he’s improving. All qualified FPA members can do the same by accessing the FPA toolkit. If you join your exclusive member's area you can also access an improved version – it is a great way to keep track of your progress and share it with your employer.
• PAs outside of the UK – we explored the options for PAs to work outside of the UK, how this looks, what’s involved, and how it may differ from the profession within the UK. For all delegates who registered for the FPA virtual conference in November 2021, you can access the FPA hub which has a series of PAs stories from around the world – you can catch up until 24 Feb!

Overall, I was so pleased with how engaged all attendees were. There were great questions asked, and clearly a lot of passion and enthusiasm in the area to get it right. We absolutely hear where you're coming from and will work to support you in every way that we can. I suspect that many of the topics discussed will come up again and again, but perhaps with slight regional variations.

Ultimately, this is what this tour is about – hearing from our members within their regions, celebrating your success, and helping to address some of your concerns. It directly feeds into how we prioritise our workloads, what our strategy is over the next few years and how we, simply put, can be there to help you as a membership organisation.

As we learned in this session, not everything will resolve overnight. Some things we need to take away and work on, but the only way we can learn about them is from you! To those who logged in and took the time to chat with us, thank you very much for your insights and your support. For members in other regions, if you’re not signed up for your regional event yet – go and check out the schedule… it’s going to be a pretty busy but insightful next few months!

North East and North Cumbria 

Following the success of the first virtual event on my FPA presidential tour, I was excited for the second one. More so because it marked our first visit ‘up North’. 

We welcomed over 20 qualified PAs and student PAs. Thank you to all of you who took the time to join. I was delighted at the level of engagement, that was maintained, along with the questions asked. 

To that end, some of the hot topics included: 

• Career progression: I expected this topic would be common – and I was right. As our profession continues to grow, it is natural for us to think about what is next for us. We discussed at length what the future, can look like for us, and the available opportunities. Many of those include getting involved with the FPA, and we regularly share these in member newsletters, so keep your eyes out. 
• Additional opportunities: leading on from opportunities we explored the growing number of PAs being showcased in research and education. We have a spotlight coming soon which will showcase PAs in research, so there will be a great opportunity to learn more. RCP journals (Future Healthcare Journal and Clinical Medicine) are always looking for PAs to showcase their work.
• Clinical progression: as a profession, we now practice in over 50 specialties, and in the future, we will continue to grow further. We discussed, at length, the importance of maintaining PA exposure amongst a range of specialties and the scope of our skillset. What we know and learn as newly qualified PAs continuing to grow over time – we learn new skills, gain new knowledge, and perform more procedures. One way we can monitor this growth is through the annual FPA Census. Each year it welcomes FPA members to complete their response, and this helps form the basis of FPA activity and what is important, to our members. The 2021 census report will be released later in the year, and I would encourage all existing and future FPA members to complete their responses as it does help! 

I’m pleased with how well our first Northern-based event went – and the level of engagement shown. Yet again, the objective of the tour is proven. We have come away with a greater understanding of the issues impacting our members and how we can look to work to support them! 

If you want to share your thoughts, experiences, and ideas with us, why not register for your regional event? It’s not long before we hit the road, and I want to meet as many of you as possible.

Kate’s chronicle – West Midlands

The third (and final) virtual stop on my FPA presidential tour was my stomping ground. We welcomed a great selection of PAs working in primary and secondary care from the West Midlands region.

As always, I want to extend my thanks to everyone who took the time to join us, shared their experiences, and asked questions. We had a smaller group, but still a great level of engagement. The topics we chatted about included:

• A West Midlands physician associate group: currently, there isn’t a PA group or forum existing in the West Midlands region. Driving regional representation is a main objective for the FPA and was the driving force of this UK-wide tour. Members expressed their interest in having access to a local group and will explore the options. The full list of the current HEE PA ambassadors is listed on the FPA website.
• PAs working in Primary Care Networks (PCNs): we know from the 2020 census report that 30% of PAs currently work in primary care. At this event, we heard from PAs currently working in PCNs. They shared their thoughts on finding it difficult working across a range of practices and the scope of practice involved. FPA vice president Michelle Chapman shared guidance from Health Education England about the scope of practice for PAs working within PCNs.
• Guidance for employers: the importance of guidance for employers concerning a PA's scope of practice and support level was discussed. The FPA has a host of documentation available for PA employers to access. We do understand that documentation requires updating, and this is ongoing.

Concluding this event feels as though a key tour milestones has been met. All future events will now be face-to-face (COVID-19 permitting), and I can’t wait to hit the road and meet as many of you as possible.

Places at our physical events are limited. I highly encourage early registration to avoid disappointment. If you’re unsure when we’re coming to your region, look at the tour schedule in the tab above. As always, your thoughts, ideas, and questions are welcomed!

Kate’s chronicle – Merseyside 

Following months of planning and three virtual events, I was delighted to finally take our FPA presidential tour on the road. The first physical event saw me and the FPA team visit Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Merseyside (Liverpool). 

Firstly, I must extend my thanks, and gratitude to the physician associate (PA) team, including the PA programme lead, clinical research facility clinical lead, lead PA, and PA in research, for their welcoming hospitality. It was an extremely insightful afternoon, and I was humbled to receive a tour from the PA team of one of their wards and the clinical research facility

Throughout the visit, it was clear to see the level of enthusiasm and drive the PA team had for the profession, and their roles. This continued to shine during our conversations. At length, we discussed: 

• Scope of the PA role: the team shared insight into their specific roles, including how they work between wards and A&E, which allows them to continually develop their skills and autonomy. We also heard from a PA working in community care across several specialties. This positively showcases just how well the PA role works in this setting. As generalist healthcare professionals, we’re able to support multiple disciplines effectively, and it was inspiring to hear how successful this model is working at the Trust. 
• Education and training: it was fantastic to hear how the PA team is providing varied levels of training to the nursing team. It was shared how this enables them to remove pressure from the nursing team and provide them with additional knowledge and support. 
• PA support: as FPA president, it fills me with joy to hear about the positive level of support our PAs receive when in practice. This was highlighted throughout the visit to Alder Hey. The team expressed how they are continually supported by consultants, registrars, and the wider multidisciplinary team, and the level of support they bring to the team as PAs. 
• PAs in research: the country's first PA to work in clinical research works at Alder Hey. It was insightful to hear about the projects being worked on and their plans to employ an additional PA in research in the future. As a faculty, we continue to encourage members to get involved in research opportunities, including the poster competitions held by the RCP and during the annual FPA conference. Keep an eye on your inbox for the April 2022 member newsletter where Alder Hey’s PA in research will be sharing an insight into the role. There will also be an article published in RCP’s magazine, Commentary showcasing the role. 

The visit to Alder Hey highlighted further the reasons why this FPA tour is so important. Being able to hear directly from PAs in practice, celebrate their success, and support their future plans is what this is about. If you haven’t already registered or thought about joining your regional event, I would highly encourage you to come and join us.