The AMA Comes Out Against Rebranding PAs as “Physician Associates” as Well as Noctors Calling Themselves Physicians
Maybe there is fight in these old dogs yet. The AOA grew a pair and did the same in late May. Now this:
The AMA House of Delegates has come out against the effort to rebrand the health-professional role of physician assistant as “physician associate,” saying the move taken recently by the American Academy of PAs (AAPA) will perplex patients seeking the benefit of physicians’ team leadership and superior training.
But wait, there is more:
In addition, the AMA will “actively advocate that the stand-alone title ‘physician’ be used only to refer to doctors of allopathic medicine (MDs) and doctors of osteopathic medicine (DOs), and not be used in ways that have the potential to mislead patients about the level of training and credentials of nonphysician health care workers.”
This may actually get doctors to join the AMA again. Maybe, just maybe the AMA will protect patients from those who try to mislead patients.
They have the money.
They still have some credibility.
Let’s just see if they do SOMETHING to stop this encroachment by those pretending to be real doctors.
I won’t hold my breath, though.
A day late and a dollar short, I fear
I welcome them to come to Florida where many optometrists masquerade as eye “physicians”. I guess they can call themselves doctors since they receive a doctorate degree, but they can also add additional suffixes to proclaim board certification and special training in certain areas (like co-management of postop cataract patients, glaucoma-where they are itching to get their fingers on a laser,etc.)