Graduate / 'My mother, a retired registered nurse' - Physician's Assistant Personal Statement [4]

Hi, I am applying for PA school and would really appreciate any advice/critiques on my essay. It gets pretty weak towards the end as I was starting to feel burned out!

Thank you very much

As a high school math teacher, I am having rewarding experiences educating and motivating students, but it is not my true calling. I want to positively affect a wider scope of the public and do so in a way that can improve and potentially save lives. The medical field is the best option to fulfill this desire and becoming a physician's assistant has become my new passion. The aspects of the profession that most attract me are its rewarding nature and its fascinating and diverse content. Due to my experiences as an educator and professional football player, and to my intelligence and compassion, I am confident I would be an excellent physician's assistant.

While shadowing a physician's assistant in an orthopedic practice, I met a patient, Diane, whose story solidified my commitment to becoming a PA. Seven months prior, Diane was on the verge of becoming a diabetic due to her obesity, but was unable to lose weight due to a poor diet and an arthritic knee that prevented her from exercising. The physician's assistant at Diane's family practice sent her to a dietician to improve her nutrition, and to an orthopedic center, where another physician's assistant gave her a series of Synvisc shots to relieve the pain in her knee. When I met Diane, she lost 42 pounds and, consequently, she would likely be approved for a knee replacement surgery that would allow her to continue her remarkable turnaround.

The ability to work in diverse fields, such as a family practice or an orthopedic center, and having rewarding experiences of improving and potentially saving people's lives, as with Diane, are two facets of the profession I am most drawn to. I have always been fascinated by the human body and as a physician's assistant, I will be able to learn all of the body's intricacies while having numerous specific areas of practice to choose. And through this combination of medical knowledge and diverse areas of practice, I will be able to positively effect a vast number of people's lives. However, in order to help an even greater number of people, I will promote patient self-advocacy through education.

While shadowing, I learned there is a pressing need in health care for medical professionals that can effectively educate patients. I saw how a man's poor diet ultimately lead to him developing diabetic neuropathy that, because he could not feel the infection, nearly resulted his gangrenous foot being amputated. If the man knew the causes of diabetes this may never have happened. Being a high school teacher this is one of my strongest attributes. Working with students of diverse learning styles and abilities on a daily basis, I have developed an exceptional ability of explaining ideas and concepts in ways that are tangible and easily understood. As a physician's assistant I will utilize this skill-set to educate my patients on preventative measures they can take to ensure good health.

While shadowing, I also learned that the challenging and fast-paced nature of the job requires a vast knowledge-base and the ability to work well under pressure. Physician's assistants need to apply and retain a tremendous amount of information when treating patients and writing patient reports. Due to my experience in teaching numerous branches of mathematics, each of which demand the application and memorization a wide variety of information, I am confident in my ability to handle the cognitive aspects of the job. Because physician's assistants must also be able to dispense this knowledge at a fast pace, as they see numerous patients in a short period of time, and do so without error, as people's health is at stake, they must be able to handle the resultant high-pressure environment. Having played four years in the high-stakes environment of the National Football League, which requires players to think and react quickly, I believe I can excel under pressure. Though my experiences as a teacher and athlete have helped prepare me for the profession, I believe my compassionate nature will make me a great physician's assistant.

My mother, a retired registered nurse, always encouraged me to pursue a medical career because of my warm and commiserative personality. I genuinely care about people and want to help them live healthier more fulfilling lives. Although it took me a longer to than many people to realize the health care profession was my true calling, I believe the experiences I have had in my past careers will make me a better physician's assistant.