21-07-2025
Is there confusion over the role of 'physician associates'?
An investigation ordered by the UK government into physician associates there has found they shouldn't diagnose and treat untriaged patients. It also recommends changing their name to "assistant" rather than associate to stop them being confused with doctors. Four months ago the Health Minister, Simeon Brown, gave the go ahead for Physician Associates to become part of the regulated health workforce here. At the moment the PA's working here are trained in the UK or the US and work under the licence of a supervising doctor. The New Zealand Resident Doctors' Association has backed the two main findings of the UK report, but the New Zealand Physicians Associate Society says the situation in the UK isn't applicable here. Kathryn is joined by Deborah Powell the National Secretary of the Resident Doctors Association and Lisa deWolfe the regulation chair of the New Zealand Physician Associate Society.
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