Meet the "physician assistant": Starting in August, a new profession in Israel will commence, where its graduates will meet patients not only in emergency rooms but also in hospital departments and health clinics. They will examine patients, present the case to doctors, and perform various referrals and medical procedures to ease the load and shorten waiting times. For years, the has faced a significant shortfall: positions have not changed significantly since the 1970s, resulting in a constant deficit in the ratio of doctors per capita, among the lowest in Western countries.
Worldwide, the increasing load, due to rising life expectancy and high morbidity has been tackled by creating a new profession: physician assistant, working alongside doctors to assist in their work. The profession has also been approved in Israel, and for about eight years, the Health Ministry has been training paramedics to function as medical aides in emergency rooms, performing admissions and medical examinations, referrals for imaging and initial tests, and ongoing monitoring and treatment. The training is a one-year course for paramedics or nurses, including practical training.
However, the program has not been very successful: only 100 physician assistants are currently employed in emergency rooms, and surveys among program graduates showed high dropout rates. The physician assistants complained about the lack of career advancement opportunities and low wages that do not match the level and worklo.
