What do nurses think of Physicians Assistants?

[Johansson]

I am a nursing major and was told by a PA that I should forget nursing and become a PA. I explained that I felt the scope of practice was entirely different. I explained I felt I had more opportunities in nursing than as a PA such as CRNA,NP, etc...I was then told that NP's will be a thing of the past as doctors get rid of them and PA's will be the career of choice. This upset me and now I feel my choice in nursing has been bashed by someone who doesn't understand why I'd choose nursing. Do nurses like PA's or are they alot of trouble?!

[HeartsOpenWide, RN]

PA's are not capable of carring a pt. load. They only "assist" while a NP can carry a pt. load. And another thing that is great about NP's is that they are nurses to begin with. With the expansion of the NP educational trac into areas such as Acute Care, Emergency Care and Pediatric Acute care they are also much more specialized than PA's. Support your profession!! NP's are the future and PA's are of the past.

Actually this is not true. At least in California, our PAs have their own patients just like the FNPs do in family practice; sometimes it is hard to tell them apart, they have DEA#s, write Medical DX, and perform nearly all of the same procedures at the FNPs in the office I use to work at...they almost have the same scope of practice except the PA must have all their charting signed of by an MD while an FNP can not.

That being said, PAs do not have as much mobility as the NP though.