ALEXANDRIA, Va., May 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the American Academy of PAs' (AAPA) Center for Healthcare Leadership and Management (CHLM) announced a partnership with Northeastern University in Boston to offer a graduate certificate in PA Leadership and Management. This first-of-its-kind certificate is for leaders currently in management positions or those interested in pursuing leadership positions within their healthcare organizations. Participating students will gain proficiency in conflict management, project management, effective communication, medical billing and reimbursement and workforce productivity measurement.
"As the PA profession grows, we are seeing more and more PAs take on leadership positions," said L. Gail Curtis, PA-C, MPAS, DFAAPA, president and chair of the AAPA Board of Directors. "As PAs take on these essential roles, it's important to equip them with the critical skills they need to lead with authority."
Participants will also receive academic credit and continuing medical education (CME), meaning they can use resources such as employer tuition reimbursement and CME funds to offset program fees. The certificate is not designed to replace a full master's program; instead it is designed to supplement core leadership competencies.
"Leadership skills, like clinical skills, are able to be developed and enhanced by quality education," said Trent Honda, PhD, MMS, PA-C, assistant clinical professor and director of the PA program at Northeastern University. "PA leaders need both general leadership abilities as well as skills specific to the PA professional environment. This certificate, taught by experts in leadership in general, and PA leadership in particular, is the first to offer both."
In addition to providing hospitals and health systems strategic and operational guidance on how best to utilize their PA and NP workforce, CHLM also provides leadership opportunities through its annual Executive Leadership Conference. This annual conference offers PA leaders professional networking opportunities and a first-rate leadership and management curriculum.
PAs are medical professionals who diagnose illness, develop and manage treatment plans, prescribe medications, and often serve as a patient's principal healthcare provider. With more than 123,000 PAs today, the PA profession is projected to increase 37% from 2016 to 2026, significantly faster than average for all occupations.
Interested students may begin applying July 1 for the fall 2018 start of the graduate certificate. For more information, visit CHLM.org or northeastern.edu.
About the American Academy of PAs
AAPA is the national organization that advocates for all PAs and provides tools to improve PA practice and patient care. Founded in 1968, AAPA represents a profession of more than 123,000 PAs across all medical and surgical specialties in all fifty states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. territories and the uniformed services. Visit www.aapa.org to learn more.
About AAPA's Center for Healthcare Leadership and Management (CHLM)
CHLM works directly with hospitals and health systems to maximize team based utilization and optimize PA practice settings. CHLM provides expertise, analytics, and industry best practices to help their clients evaluate organizational alternatives designed to improve the effectiveness of their provider workforce. For more information, visit www.chlm.org.
About Northeastern University
Founded in 1898, Northeastern is a global, experiential research university offering undergraduate and graduate programs leading to degrees through the doctorate in nine colleges and schools, and select advanced degrees at graduate campuses in Charlotte, North Carolina, Seattle, Silicon Valley, and Toronto. Northeastern's PA program, founded in 1971, has a long-standing history of, and expertise in, the education and training of PAs. Northeastern has been recognized for many years as a leader in physician assistant education and has a robust history of preparing future and current PA leaders. For more information, visit www.northeastern.edu.
SOURCE American Academy of PAs
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