Morehouse School of Medicine Physician Assistant Program

Mission and Program Goals

Mission

The mission of the Morehouse School of Medicine Physician Assistant Program is to lead the creation and advancement of health equity by empowering and educating the next generation of physician assistants to achieve academic, personal, and professional success and become committed life-long learners who will provide compassionate, high quality, patient-centered care to meet the primary health care needs of the urban and rural underserved populations in Georgia and the nation. 

Values

The Values of the Morehouse School of Medicine Physician Assistant Program are:

  • Integrity
  • Wisdom
  • Knowledge
  • Excellence
  • Innovation
  • Service
  • Compassion
  • Leadership
  • Professionalism

Due to the developing nature of our program and insufficient longevity of data collection, our program is still in the refinement process for measuring goal achievement. We are committed to continually improving our data sources and analyses to measure effectiveness in attaining our program-specific goals.

Goals

1.  Foster an environment that ensures our education, research, and service initiatives address the primary healthcare needs of the underserved rural and urban communities across Georgia.   

     This goal contains three main actions supported by the data below:

  • Education
    • Faculty analyzed data collected on an End of Program survey administered to the classes of 2021 and 2022.
      • The survey asked students to rate their confidence in program competencies across nine domains.  The nine domains included patient care, knowledge of practice, practice-based learning improvement, interpersonal and communication skills, professionalism, systems-based practice, interprofessional collaboration, personal and professional development, and social accountability in medicine.  
      • The program set the average benchmark at >3.5 on a 5.0-point Likert scale for student perception of all competency domains on End of Program survey.
      • Students in the 2021 and 2022 cohorts rated their confidence in the nine program competencies as an average score of 4.17 on a 5.0 Likert scale. 
    • Faculty analyzed data collected on the Faculty and Staff Curriculum survey administered to faculty and staff during the matriculation of the student cohorts 2021 and 2022. 
      • The survey asked faculty and staff to rate the curriculum for both didactic and clinical years.
      • The program set the average benchmark at >3.5 on a 5.0-point Likert scale for questions about the effectiveness of didactic and clinical phases in providing students the knowledge and skills necessary for entry-level practice in varying fields of medicine on the Faculty and Staff Curriculum Survey.  
      • PA faculty and staff rated the didactic and curriculum phase curricula as above average in preparing students to enter practice in family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, emergency medicine, behavioral medicine, and women's health.
    • The faculty analyzed student performance on end-of-rotation exams.
      • The program set the benchmark that all students must achieve 70% on all core end-of-rotation exams. 
      • 100% of students in the classes of 2021 and 2022 achieved greater than or equal to 70% on all core end-of-rotation exams.

 

  • Research
    • Student Capstone projects are completed in groups with a planned focus on one of the following: family health, pediatrics, women's health, or rural health. Past topics include:
      • Assessing the effects of social media as a tool for teaching and implementing healthy lifestyles and behaviors in children combating obesity
      • Talking Dirty to Prevent STIs: Identifying Poor Communication and Condom Negotiating Strategies as a Risk Factor for STI Transmission in the African American Community
      • The program indicated that benchmark as 50% of students would be selected to participate in the annual MSM Research Symposium. 
      • None of the class of 2021 and 2022 student individual or group Capstone projects were submitted to the MSM Research Symposium for consideration due to timing of the symposium and project completion dates.
      • The program did not meet the research benchmark for the class of 2021 and 2022.
  • Service
    • The program considered the number of students employed in Georgia and primary care settings. The 2021 cohort completed a Graduate survey 6-months after graduation.
    • The program established a benchmark that 65% of students would practice medicine in Georgia, 20% would practice in primary care, 30% in Medically Underserved Areas (MUA), and 30% in Healthcare Provider Shortage Area (HPS).
  • 91% of respondents to the Graduate survey indicated they were employed in Georgia. 
  • 34% of respondents are working in primary care (Internal medicine or Family Practice).
  • 58% of respondents to a graduate survey are working or have worked in a Medically Underserved Area (MUA).
  • 33% of respondents to a graduate survey are working or have worked in a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA).

 

    • The program considered student volunteer hours at the MSM HEAL Clinic. 
      • The program established a benchmark of 50% of students would volunteer with the HEAL Clinic.
      • An increasing percentage of MSM PA students volunteered with the HEAL Clinic, initially with 21% of the Class of 2021 volunteering, on average 12 hours per participating student to 46% of the Class of 2023 volunteering, on average 15 hours per volunteer. 

 

    • The program considered student performance in the Medicine & Society Course series.  This course series includes service initiatives as well as the elements of the capstone project. 
      • The benchmark established was that all students must pass with a grade of 70% or greater.  
      • The program met the benchmark as all students completed the Medicine & Society Course series with an average grade of 95.7%. 

Goal 1 Program Effectiveness - The program met all benchmarks in the education area.  All but one benchmark was met in both the research and service areas.  Thus, 80% of benchmarks were met for Goal 1.  The program recognizes that an above average (80%) score across all benchmarks as evidence of effectiveness in meeting Goal 1.

 

2.  Engage learners in opportunities to explore transformational models of care for vulnerable populations that advance health equity. 

            This goal contains four metrics supported by the data below:

  • Capstone Research Project
    • The program established the benchmark that all (100%) students must complete a capstone project that focused on vulnerable populations.
    • 100% of students completed a capstone research project focusing on family health, pediatrics, women’s health, or rural health specifically in underserved and/or marginalized communities.
    • The program met the benchmark for 2021 and 2022 cohorts.
  • Community Service
    • The program established the benchmark that all (100%) students (cohort 2021 and 2022) must complete community service for vulnerable populations.
    • 100% of students participated in community service, including
  • PAs in the Park
  • Grady Senior Services Outreach 
  •  
  • Medicine & Society Course Series
  • All (100%) students completed Medicine & Society Course Series, which includes the Community-Oriented Primary Care Project.
    • The Community-Oriented Primary Care (COPC) Project is a culminating community engagement group assignment designed to demonstrate the application of steps and principles of community-oriented primary care (COPC). The students conduct community health needs assessment projects that teach social determinants of health and generate evidence-based health promotion intervention in response to health-related issues that inform clinical practice. (Benchmark: 100% of students must complete Medicine & Society course series and obtain a passing grade (>70%) in all courses. This series includes a Community-Oriented Primary Care Project. Meeting benchmark for 2021 and 2022 cohorts).
  • Social Accountability (Program Domain 9)
  • The program established the benchmark that all (100%) students must rate achievement in Domain 9: Social Accountability in the Practice of Medicine as >3.5 on a 5.0-point Likert scale. for student perception of all competency domains on End of Program survey.
  • All students who completed the program rated achievement in Domain 9: Social Accountability in the Practice of Medicine as 4.23. 
  • The program met the benchmark for 2021 and 2022 cohorts.

Goal 2 Program Effectiveness - The program met all benchmarks across each metric including research, service, classroom, and program competencies.  The program recognizes this achievement as evidence of effectiveness in meeting Goal 2.

 

3.  Recruit, educate, retain, and graduate learners from underrepresented groups in the medical profession to increase the diversity of the Physician Assistant workforce.

 

  • Recruit and Retain
    • The program set a benchmark that it will achieve greater than the national average for recruitment and matriculation of students from underrepresented groups in the medical profession.
      • 71% of matriculated students to the MSM PA program identified as Black or African American.
      • Nationally, PA programs report 2.7% of students identify as Black or African American1
      • 3% of matriculated students to the MSM PA program identified as Hispanic or Latino.
      • Nationally, PA programs report 4.8% of students identify as Hispanic, Latino or Spanish in orgin1
      • 6% of matriculated students identified as more than one race.
      • Nationally, PA programs report 3.2% of students identify as Multiracial1
    • The program met the benchmark for students identifying as Black or African American, as well as students identifying as more than one race. The program did not meet the benchmark for students identifying as Hispanic or Latino for matriculated program for 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 cohorts).
    • The program set a benchmark that the student attrition rate will be <5%.   
  • The average cohort attrition rate for the MSM PA program is 5.5% 
  • The program did not meet benchmark for 2021 and 2022 cohorts.
  • Educate and Graduate
    • The program established a benchmark for the All-time PANCE pass rate as 95% or higher for all graduates.
  • 79% PANCE pass rate for MSM PA Program Class of 2021
  • 91% PANCE pass rate for MSM PA Program Class of 2022 
  • The program did not meet the benchmark for 2021 and 2022 cohort.

 

    • The program established a benchmark that all new graduate PA-C employees from the program will achieve at or above employer expectations from Employer Survey.
      • 100% of employers who responded reported that 2021 MSM graduates were at or above expectations in the following areas
        • history taking skills
        • physical exam skills
        • ability to make a differential diagnosis
        • appropriate knowledge of pharmacology
        • appropriate use of medications
        • appropriate use of referrals
        • appropriate use of prevention strategies
        • effective counseling and/or education of patients and their family
        • critical thinking
        • Appropriate coding
        • Communication with colleagues
        • Knowledge of commercial insurance/Medicare/Medicaid regulations
        • Professionalism
    • The program met the benchmark for the Employer survey.
  • The program established a benchmark of >3.5 on a 5.0-point Likert scale for student perception of all competency domains on the End of Program survey.
    • Graduating students perceived the program to be achieving competency across all nine domains with an average rating of 4.16 on the End of Program survey.
  • The program established a benchmark of >3.5 on a 5.0-point Likert scale for student perception of diversity on the End of Program survey.
    • Graduating students rated diversity of faculty, diversity of student body, and program mission consistent with personal values as reason they chose to attend the MSM PA program with an average rating of 4.25.
  • The program met the benchmark for perceived diversity on the End of Program survey for 2021 and 2022 cohorts.

Goal 3 Program Effectiveness - The program met five of the eight (63%) benchmarks across each metric recruiting, retaining, educating, and graduating diverse students.  The program identified an overall achievement above average (80%) across all metrics as evidence of effectiveness in meeting Goal 3.  Thus, the program was not effective in meeting this goal in its entirety. 

 

4.  Create a learning environment that promotes collaboration among interprofessional teams to ensure efficient, effective, and equitable patient-centered care.

  • The program established a benchmark indicating that graduating students should achieving a 3 or “competent” (on a 4.0-point Dreyfus scale) level for interprofessional evaluation items on the Preceptor Evaluation of Students.
    • Students in cohorts 2021 and 2022 received an average competency rating of 3.4 out of 4 on preceptor evaluation questions related to interprofessional competencies across all rotations.
  • The program met the benchmark for 2021 and 2022 cohorts
  • 100% of MSM PA Program students participated in an Interprofessional Experience with University of Georgia physical therapy students
    • On a survey conducted after the session, students rated positive statements about learning, communication, and teamwork with an average of 4.91.(Benchmark: >3.5 on 5.0-point Likert scale for student rating of agreement about the efficacy of Interprofessional Experience (IPE). Meeting benchmark for 2021 and 2022 cohorts).
  • Students who have completed the program rated achievement in Domain 7: Interprofessional Collaboration as 4.02. (Benchmark >3.5 on a 5.0-point Likert scale for student perception of all competency domains on End of Program survey. Meeting benchmark for 2021 and 2022 cohorts)
  • Students who have completed the program rated agreement with statements about interprofessional experience helping them better understand healthcare roles as 4.12. (Benchmark >3.5 on a 5.0-point Likert scale on End of Program survey. Meeting benchmark for 2021 and 2022 cohorts)

Goal 4 Program Effectiveness - The program met all benchmarks across each metric including the preceptor evaluation, IPE experience, and End of Program survey.  The program recognizes this achievement as evidence of effectiveness in meeting Goal 4.

 

5.  Cultivate effective leadership skills that empower learners to identify and address priority local, regional, and global health concerns.

 

  • 100% of students completed leadership modules as part of the PALs Grant, which include topics such as transformative leadership and high-performing teams.
  • The program established the benchmark as >3.5 on 5.0-point Likert scale for student agreement about statements related to leadership module effectiveness as part of PALS Curriculum.
    • Students agreed the modules taught them something new about leadership in medical practice, teaching how to advocate for patients and increase understanding of health policy (Rated an average of 4.40 out of 5 in agreement) 
  • The program met the benchmark for cohorts of 2022 and 2023 cohorts
  • The program established the benchmark 50% of all students would be engaged in leadership roles after graduation.
    • 17% of students in the 2021 and 2022 cohorts who responded to the graduate survey noted they were currently or previously engaged in a leadership role. 
  • The program did not meet the benchmark for this metric

Goal 5 Program Effectiveness - The program met one of the two (50%) benchmarks. The program identified an overall achievement above average (80%) across all metrics as evidence of effectiveness in meeting Goal 5.  Thus, the program was not effective in meeting this goal in its entirety. 

 

6.  Support faculty development and engagement in teaching, scholarship, and service.

  • 80% of faculty and staff will attend the annual PAEA Forum.
    • 79% of respondents to a faculty and staff survey had attended PAEA Forum 2022.
  • 80% of faculty and staff will feel supported by the program for professional development through release time.
  • 69% of faculty and staff noted they felt supported by the program for professional development through release time.
  • 80% of faculty and staff will feel supported by the program for professional development through funding.
  • 62% of faculty and staff noted they felt supported by the program for professional development through funding.
  • Faculty rated agreement with the statement that new faculty mentorship is adequate at 3.47. (Benchmark: >3.5 on a 5.0-point Likert scale for faculty perception of institutional support on Faculty and Staff Curriculum Survey. Not meeting the benchmark for years 2020, 2021. Met benchmark for 2022.)

Goal 6 Program Effectiveness - The program did not meet the four benchmarks for this goal.  Thus, the program was not effective in meeting Goal 6. 

Physician Assistant Education Association, By the Numbers: Program Report 35: Data from the 2019 Program Survey, Washington, DC: PAEA; 2020. doi: 10.17538/PR35.2020