Master of Physician Assistant Science

Mission Statement

To prepare high quality physician assistants, exceptionally trained to practice evidence-based medicine and embrace culturally diverse and inclusive environments, who will serve each person with compassion and professionalism.

Vision Statement

To transform students, through rigorous academic preparation and excellence in clinical skill development, into leading members of collaborative health care teams, providing empathetic and inclusive care and leaving lasting impacts on the patients and communities they serve.

1. Support the OU MPAS Program’s mission by admitting a diverse cohort of highly qualified students and supporting their success throughout the program to graduation.
2. Prepare Physician Assistant students to demonstrate proficiency in medical knowledge and clinical skills, ensuring readiness to competently deliver healthcare as entry-level Physician Assistants.
3. Provide interprofessional educational opportunities to foster critical thinking, effective communication, and collaboration with other members of the healthcare community. 
4. Demonstrate professionalism in all aspects of the OU MPAS Program and foster a commitment to lifelong learning to ensure continuous personal and professional growth in the evolving field of healthcare.
5. Provide diverse experiential learning opportunities through the OU MPAS Program curriculum to enhance student understanding and application of cultural awareness, social determinants of health, and effective communication strategies in medical practice.

OU MPAS Program Competencies (ARC-PA Std A3.012g)

PC = Program Competency

PC 1. Medical Knowledge

1. Demonstrate the ability to apply biomedical and clinical sciences to patient care, integrating pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of common conditions.
2. Integrate into practice basic principles of public health including epidemiology, disease prevention, surveillance, reporting, and the maintenance of population health.
3. Demonstrate sufficient knowledge of the different types of healthcare systems, including the legal, regulatory, insurance, reimbursement, billing/coding, and patient safety issues related to the practice of medicine.

PC 2. Interpersonal and Communication Skills

1. Demonstrate effective documentation of medical information in an accurate, logical, and understandable manner.
2. Exhibit effective communication with patients, families, and healthcare teams through clear, empathetic, and culturally competent interactions.

PC 3. Clinical and Technical Skills

1. Provide evidence-based, patient-centered care that includes history-taking, physical examination, diagnosis, and management, ensuring treatment plans align with patient needs and values.
2. Perform and document essential diagnostic and therapeutic procedures accurately and safely within the PA scope of practice.
3. Demonstrate the ability to gather clinical information, formulate differential diagnoses, order, and interpret laboratory studies and imaging.

PC 4. Clinical Reasoning and Problem-Solving Abilities

1. Apply critical thinking to identify, prioritize, and address patient problems, ensuring logical and efficient decision-making in various clinical scenarios (e.g., acute, chronic, emergent, or preventive).
2. Deliver equitable healthcare by recognizing and addressing social determinants of health and cultural differences affecting patient care.
3. Critically evaluate medical literature and integrate findings into clinical practice to improve patient outcomes and personal performance.
4. Navigate healthcare systems effectively to deliver cost-conscious care, advocate for quality improvement, and collaborate in multidisciplinary teams.

PC 5. Professional Behavior

1. Uphold ethical principles, sensitivity to diversity, and adherence to legal and regulatory requirements in all professional interactions.

Technical standards are published to allow a student candidate the ability to make an informed decision regarding application to the MPAS program.  These standards are considered necessary to successfully complete the didactic and clinical portions of the program as well as continue with the skills necessary to progress to clinical competency as a practitioner.

Academic adjustments can be made for disabilities in some instances, but a student must be able to perform in a reasonably independent manner.

The Disability Support Services Office (DSS) assists current and prospective students who are requesting accommodations to access the programs and services at Oakland University. Accommodations are determined through an interactive, individualized, case by case interview between DSS and the student. Application for accommodations and documentation guidelines can be found on the DSS website. https://oakland.edu/dss/student-resources/accommodations/.

Practitioners in healthcare must have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to function in a wide variety of clinical experiences and patient care scenarios.  Students in the Master of Physician Assistant Science Program must be able to integrate, analyze and synthesize data consistently and accurately.

Technical standards are addressed in seven categories:  observation; communication; motor; sensory; strength, mobility, and endurance; intellectual including conceptual, integrative, and quantitative; and behavioral and social.

Requirements for Admission, Promotion, Continuation and Graduation

Minimal Technical Standards

1. Observation: Candidates and students must have sufficient uncorrected or corrected visual acuity, depth perception, and color perception to be able to observe demonstrations, experiments, laboratory exercises and lectures in the basic and clinical sciences. They must be able to observe a patient accurately at a distance and up close. Vision must be sufficient to utilize clinical instrumentation; observe written and graphic information (such as EKGs and X rays); identify clinical landmarks and textural changes on anatomical structures; and observe patient physical qualities such as posture, locomotion, and movement in a clinical setting. Observing the patient includes the use of visual, auditory, and somatic sensation, and is enhanced by the functional use of other sensory modalities.
   
   If for any reason the candidate's ability to observe or acquire information through the above- mentioned sensory modalities is inhibited, the candidate must possess the ability to obtain the acquired information, whether basic science or patient related, in an alternative fashion.

2. Communication: Candidates and students must be able to communicate effectively and sensitively using both oral and written communication skills with patients, their families, and with all members of the health care team using traditional or non-traditional means. The candidate must be able to create and comprehend written materials such as medical records, laboratory reports, and pharmacological prescriptions. The candidate must possess adequate interpersonal skills, empathy toward others, and a willingness to interact cooperatively in all professional environments.
   
   
3. Motor: Candidates and students must have sufficient motor functions to execute movements required to perform laboratory exercises and provide clinical care. Such actions require coordination of both gross and fine motor movements and equilibrium, and functional use of the senses of touch and vision. The candidate must possess the motor skills necessary to perform palpation, percussion, auscultation, and other diagnostic maneuvers to complete basic and specialized portions of the physical examination of a patient and is expected to execute movements and assume reasonable bodily postures required to provide diagnostic evaluation and treatment of patients including emergency medical care.  If unable to perform these tasks independently, they must be able to direct others to perform these tasks.
   
   
4. Sensory: Candidates and students must have functional use of sensory skills such as tactile discrimination and proprioception for classroom, laboratory, and clinical experiences. Functional use of hearing and vision are also required and are described in the sections above.
   
   
5. Strength, Mobility and Endurance: Candidates and students must have sufficient upright posture, balance, flexibility, mobility, strength, and cardiovascular endurance for standing, sitting, lifting moderate weight and participating in classroom, laboratory and clinical experiences.
   
   
6. Intellectual: Candidates and students must have sufficient cognitive capabilities to assimilate the detailed and complex information presented in formal lectures, small group discussions, individual teaching sessions, and clinical settings. The ability to measure, calculate, reason, analyze, recall and synthesize information across various modalities; understand spatial relationships of structure and form and test hypothesizes are essential components of critical thinking. Problem solving, the critical and essential skill demanded of physicians, requires all these intellectual abilities. These problem-solving skills must be performed in a timely fashion.
   
   
7. Behavioral and Social: Candidates and students must possess the demeanor and maturity required for full utilization of his or her intellectual abilities. This includes interactions with faculty, staff, student colleagues and the general population.  Students must  exercise good judgment in diagnosis and treatment of patients. Required skills include the ability to function in stressful and demanding environments, and demonstration of the flexibility to cope with changing situations and the ambiguity inherent in medical problem solving.
   
   Candidates and students must consistently demonstrate compassion, honesty, integrity, concern, and respect for self and others. In addition to possessing an intrinsic desire for excellence, the candidate must possess tolerance for and acceptance of difference, and show interest and motivation to become an effective PA.
   
   Students are expected to demonstrate appropriate behavior at all times in their personal and professional life. Failure to do so can result in dismissal. Examples of inappropriate behavior include but are not limited to substance abuse, sexual harassment and other forms of harassment, violent behavior, and illegal activities.

Oakland University MPAS program will also include a link in the Student Handbook, the “Core Competencies for New Physician Assistant Graduates” as developed by PAEA to include:

1. Patient Centered Practice Knowledge
2. Society and Population Health
3. Health Literacy and Communication
4. Interprofessional Collaborative Practice and Leadership
5. Professional and Legal aspects of healthcare

And the “Competencies for the Physician Assistant Profession” as developed by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA), Accreditation and Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA), Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA), and the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) to include competency areas related to:

1. Medical knowledge
2. Interpersonal and Communication Skills
3. Patient care