You are here
Physician Associates
Physician Associates (PAs) are medically trained, generalist healthcare professionals, who work alongside doctors and provide medical care as an integral part of the multidisciplinary team.
Physician Associates are one of the Medical Associate Professions (MAPs) and can be found working throughout primary and secondary care. Physician Associates are overseen by a dedicated medical supervisor but they can work autonomously with appropriate support.
The MAPs Core Capabilities Framework is now available on the Medical Associate Professions page.
Physician Associate (degree) apprenticeships
Health Education England is implementing a national framework to support employers to access quality assured PA degree apprenticeship training programmes. Ten higher education institutions (HEIs) have been approved to deliver programmes, starting from September 2023. See the link below for more information, including information on funding, other FAQs and up to date provider/course information. Employers can also access a template job description and business case.
FAQs on the Healthcare Apprenticeship Standards Online (HASO) website.
Physician Associate preceptorships
We offer a £5,000 preceptorship allowance paid to employers to support the supervision and educational needs for newly qualified physician associates working in primary care. Find out more about the Preceptorship Year through our guidance document (a PDF version is available under 'Related Documents').
As a by-product of the preceptorship, we have also created a Preceptorship Mentorship guidance document (a PDF version is available under 'Related Documents').
For more employer information, please visit the Faculty of Physician Associates website.
Physician Associate ambassadors
There are a number of PA ambassadors who act as advocates for the profession across England. They help to form links with universities and work on local workforce engagement and development. Contact details on the FPA website.
For more information
Learn more about Physician Associates roles from NHS Health Careers and these sites: