Albuquerque, NM (KKOB) –Micah Shaw, the program director for UNM’s Physician Assistant Program says that about 90% of the program’s students remain in the state to practice after graduation. Since it was launched in 1997 the program has seen 399 graduates. Ninety-two percent of current students are New Mexico residents and 31 percent are first-generation college graduates. In New Mexico, physician assistants practice under the authority of a physician, but typically have considerable latitude in terms of diagnosing and treating patients. They often serve as primary care providers, especially in rural areas. Shaw adds, that along with nurse practitioners, PAs are helping to meet the critical need for practitioners in New Mexico because they can be trained much more quickly than MD students.
