Applying for your first physician assistant job is exciting but also nerve-wracking. If you are anything like me then you will try to prepare for every possible question that is going to be thrown your way.
What you need to remember is you are not the only one getting interviewed. You also need to interview your potential employer to make sure it is a good match. This is crucial if you want to start your career with a company or organization that will help you learn and grow as a new medical provider.
You can’t guarantee everything your interviewer tells you is 100% transparent, but at the very least you should be able to get a feeling for if this is the right job for you or not. Also, if you participate in multiple interviews (which I recommend before accepting your first job offer) then you’ll be able to compare and contrast.
While pay is obviously a very important part of your job, believe me when I tell you that there are other factors that may impact your level of happiness and contentment more. These things include your work environment, support staff, relationship with your supervising physician, and the amount of time you will actually be working per week. If you make sure to cover these four topics during your interview then you should be able to grasp whether this first physician assistant job is a good fit or not.
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Work environment
Your work environment and the culture of the office are such a crucial part of your job. If the office has a negative environment then it will impact your ability to provide quality care to your patients. I have unfortunately had the experience of working in a toxic work environment prior to physician assistant school and I promised myself I would never allow that to happen again. You can’t predict the future but you can ask the questions upfront to determine if you are entering a good work space. Questions that you can ask to help determine this include:
Are employees generally happy at work?
If other employees are not happy this may indicate a negative work environment which you do not want to be a part of! If you have the opportunity I recommend observing the staff during the day of your interview to see what the attitudes are like of the other employees.
What do the support staff complain about most frequently?
They may try to hide the fact that other employees are unhappy. If you sense that, it may be worth asking this question. It should provide some insight based on the response. Is there a lack of support? Do they feel they don’t have the supplies they need to do their jobs? Any information could help you make a decision.
Are there ever any outside work events you do as a group to boost morale?
This is a good time to ask about office culture. Are people friendly towards one another outside of work? Are there frequent work events or team-building exercises? For example, my office will occasionally do a happy hour after work for all staff to attend. It’s a great way to bring everyone together and socialize in a relaxed environment.
Support Staff
Depending on your specialty, a huge part of you being able to do your job well is relying on support staff to do theirs. In my job, I work very closely with medical assistants. Their ability to do their job well and efficiently increases my productivity. If I didn’t have reliable medical assistants, I would not be able to see the number of patients per day that I do. Some questions surrounding this topic can include the following:
How many medical assistants, nurses, etc can you count on daily?
For example, if you are expected to see 45 patients a day as a dermatology PA, but you only have one medical assistant to work with, then you should be prepared to run behind schedule and have to stay late.
If someone calls out sick or is late to work what is the protocol?
You need to know that they have protocols and systems in place to cover in case someone is incapable of helping you. You do not want to be stuck seeing patients without any assistance. Not only is it not fair to you but it is also not fair to your future patients.
What roles do the support staff play? What are their job responsibilities?
Following this theme of questions, it is also nice to know what your support staff is responsible for. This will in turn tell you what you are NOT responsible for. For example, if you want to know if the other providers call patients with lab results, but you don’t want to ask that in case it comes across that you aren’t interested in doing so, then ask if the nurse or medical assistant typically calls. There are other examples of administrative tasks that take up valuable time in your day to ask about.
Supervising physician (SP) relationship
One of the most important work relationships you will ever have in your career is the relationship you have with your supervising physician during your first physician assistant job. I was super lucky with mine. She wanted to teach and this helped me learn at a must quicker rate than my peers whose SPs had a more hands-off approach. Make sure you choose wisely! In order to determine if you found someone you can learn from you can ask questions similar to these:
What type of relationship do you have with the other physician assistants in the office?
A history of the SP having good relationships with other physician assistants is a good sign that you will experience the same. If the SP has never hired a physician assistant before then you’ll need to gauge their thoughts on what a relationship between a SP and physician assistant should look like. Make sure it matches your expectations.
Are you more hands-on or hands-off when it comes to teaching new physician assistants?
If you aren’t sure what you are getting into, it may be worth being direct. That way there is no misunderstanding when it comes to you starting work and you need help learning something.
Do you feel comfortable teaching me something if I want to learn a new skill?
Ask if they will have time to teach you specific skills or topics you may not feel comfortable with but want to learn. For example, this could include surgical skills.
Hours/taking calls
Your first few years working as a physician assistant are an important foundation for the rest of your career. You should want to spend time learning and growing as a medical provider. That being said, it is important for you to know what kind of hours you will be working. Especially, if you have other responsibilities outsie of work such as taking care of children or aging parents. The last thing you want is to expect to be working a 9-5 for your first physician assistant job but in reality, you’re expected to work 60-plus hour weeks. I recommend asking questions like these:
What hours do the other providers work?
If you can, always ask the other providers directly. They will likely be more honest about this than someone that is trying to paint a pretty picture in order to hire you.
Will I ever be required to come in after hours?
If they haven’t been clear about if you have to work weekends or nights then that might be expected at some point in the future. Many healthcare specialties already require some weekend or night work. If that’s the case ask about how much control you have over choosing your schedule.
What does the call schedule look like? Is there extra pay for taking call?
Taking call can look different depending on the job. I have never personally taken call before but I know some hospital jobs require you to live a certain distance from the hospital and to be ready to come in within a certain time frame while you are on call. These are all important questions to ask ahead of time before you sign the dotted line.
Other thoughts to consider before signing your first PA contract
Many of the questions I have recommended asking may already be answered in a contract but you won’t have that information during your interview. While this article isn’t necessarily about PA contracts, I can’t help but include here that you should never sign a contract without first reading it THOROUGHLY and asking questions. I also highly recommend having an attorney look over any contract before you sign.
The goal of asking these questions up front helps you understand if the job is a good fit. It will also show your employer that you are serious about the job and that you want to set yourself up for success, which will in turn only help the company. Are you in the process of preparing for your first physician assistant job interview? If so, comment below with questions you have!
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