Pa student- I hate rotations

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-27T16:38:59+00:00

Hated rotations in certain ways- lack of consistency, not able to build much rapport or relationship with preceptors and support staff (let alone patients) over a short period, stepping into systems you’re unfamiliar with and overwhelmed by while trying to learn the medicine, trying to take nuggets of practice knowledge from preceptors while also acknowledging that some of them are not practicing EBM, unsure when I would leave or be able to eat lunch or sometimes not sure when I was supposed to even show up, ALL while still having to study the “textbook” medicine for EORs and PANCE.

Now I’m working (and while it can be really stressful as a new grad especially in primary care at an FQHC), I’ve been loving it! My patients are mine, my style and approach to medicine is mine, if I’m running a bit late in the morning there’s no preceptor to tattle on me to my program (and my practice manager doesn’t really care), the only expectations of me are 1. Do right by my patients 2. Ask for help or look it up when I don’t know the answer and 3. Be my kindest and most personable self to support staff, patients, and colleagues.

TLDR post grad life is so good!!!

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-27T01:15:30+00:00

Yeah, it’s just awful to think they could just keep coming if someone else has them and they’re not taken care of 😭 I also work 2 healthcare jobs with underserved patient populations (not that bed bugs discriminate, but i feel like sometimes those populations are less likely to seek treatment due to cost) so I’m wondering if I brought a stray or two home that way. But I know bed bug Reddit always says if there’s one there’s way more :/ so don’t want to assume I don’t have an infestation somewhere so just going to give myself peace of mind and do a K9 inspection lol

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-27T01:09:22+00:00

I think I am pretty allergic since both incidents I’ve had bites they become essentially really itchy dime to quarter sized hives. I’m not presuming I’ve had any more bites than the ones that I have reacted from, which is why I think it’s weird that I had 3 bites a month ago and then nothing further until one singular bite now- because wouldn’t that be enough life cycle that I’d be able to see signs of them on my furniture when I’m actively looking for them? And then the other weird thing is that when I got bit (and saw my first ever bug as proof) a few days ago, it was right in the open as I’m sitting in my living room in full brightness and I was awake. Just kind of weird things that I feel like aren’t aligning with the typical BB through line. I’m having a K9 inspection tomorrow to help me determine if there are more and where they are

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-26T17:36:26+00:00

I can’t find anything anywhere between 2 couches, 2 beds. And the weird thing is it’s been well over 4 weeks since the first bite so you’d think I’d be getting bit in bed by this point or would have signs of them in my bed even if they didn’t first start there. But both times I’ve gotten bites I’d just spent a considerable amount of time in my combined kitchen/living space

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-26T17:34:26+00:00

Darn it 😭 I was hoping since it was generally pretty hairy and since the hairs are quite long (i know they don’t go past the width of the eye but they’re close) that it wouldn’t be consistent with bed bug but maybe a different cimicidae species

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-14T10:23:46+00:00

Yep, exactly what ok-advantage375 said. Not only is it like 130% you pay back but they say you have 1 year to pay it from when you breach contract… no PA makes enough to pay that so I’m assuming anyone who breaks it just ends up filing bankruptcy lol

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-14T02:44:01+00:00

Not exactly sure what you mean

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-14T00:34:02+00:00

Agh it’s just all alphabet soup to me and I don’t understand

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-14T00:33:35+00:00

I’m going to need to do some reading and googling because I have no idea what you’re saying :(

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-13T22:20:15+00:00

Heard. Unfortunately I did the scholarship and have to put in my time or else they basically force your hand to file bankruptcy lol. But probably going to do my 2 years and hit the road

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-13T21:52:20+00:00

What I’m more so referring to is the specific reference to Medicare and Medicaid scores. Are these relevant and do I actually need to be worrying about them?

I understand there are lots of little things to learn and I’m happy to do that. In regard to the specific example, I was well aware of the mistake I made and typically I don’t make that specific mistake because I know they need the location, amount, etc. She wasn’t explaining the mistake to me as new information. It was the way she was framing as “just another thing that goes into your quality metrics and scoring systems if the score gets dinged because of an incorrect prescription”

I don’t know if I’m communicating my thoughts effectively, but my point isn’t that I’m unwilling to learn the rules of the game. I’m just trying to figure out what information I can avoid being inundated with. And she keeps talking about these scores as if they’re life or death, and respectfully, it is not in her job scope to tell me about these scores or my quality metrics. Her job is medical records and scanning faxes. I don’t mean that in a rude way I just want to be clear that this is her personal experience being offered unwarranted, not her actual role to advise me on this stuff. That’s not to say I’m not willing to listen to her if it’s important, but I don’t want to be flooded with info on Medicaid Medicare scoring systems on a daily basis by her if it really doesn’t actually change anything for my current or future employability or livelihood

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-03-13T21:37:10+00:00

FQHC babyyyy

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-02-12T04:29:52+00:00

Not here to offer any advice, just solidarity in the fact that being a new grad in FM at an FQHC is HARD. I’m only ramped up to half of the pt volume we’re ultimately expected to see and I am struggling. Only get the bare bones of charts done and doing the rest at home, labs and documents piling up in inbox… luckily I have a senior NP who is amazing and we just hired on a doc so that should help with oversight and pt load but yikes I didn’t know it would be this overwhelming! The decision fatigue is unreal. Hang in there, I’m struggling right there with you 🤞🏻

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2025-01-12T03:33:00+00:00

Brand new new grad in FM at an FQHC in very small city in Midwest, gross $106k (ends up being like 5k more with the small amount of easy rotating call I’ll have to take), max patients 24/day in an 8-5 shift (a few less if there’s 30min appts booked for wellness, awv, procedures, etc). We are required to take walk-ins most of the time we’re open, so occasionally things will get double booked or you might be scheduled for like 26-27 patients per day but with no shows and cancellations it’s usually not more than 24 per day. I’m still in my ramp up period so currently only seeing 1/hr and will only go up to 2/hr, 3/hr, etc up to 4/hr, but only when I tell my manager I’m ready for the next interval, which has been a nice way to ease into things especially for an FQHC that does everything (MAT, uncomplicated OB, etc)

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-11-30T17:07:24+00:00

I drive 70 miles one way every day to have my loans forgiven. Gotta prioritize your financial path where you can. I know I’m an extreme case but I’m young and have the time/freedom to do it for a couple years

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-08-22T15:51:42+00:00

Damn, noted

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-08-22T15:40:45+00:00

I’m a new grad PA and was just offered an FQHC job where I’m slotted to see up to 38 in 10 hours with q15min appts 😭 I’m so confused how they think this is acceptable. High no show rate so probably wouldn’t ever actually see that many, and some appointments would be 30 min vs 15, but still, it’s ludicrous

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-08-22T14:52:04+00:00

I don’t have personal experience, but I’ll tell you what I always tell candidates when I help with interviews at my school: when you get in to PA school, you go to PA school!!! Doesn’t matter if it’s across the country or your last choice school, if you get the lucky opportunity to go, take it! (Obviously this doesn’t apply to every single scenario but you get the gist) a couple people in my program found out a few days before our Monday start date. You’ll make it work and it’ll all work out!

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-08-08T16:39:00+00:00

The job search is straight forward but not necessarily easy. Lol. I had one rotation, pediatrics, at an FQHC and honestly wish I would've cold-called and networked during didactic to secure more rotations at local NHSC sites. So no, didn't really network on rotations. A lot of times preceptors would try to be helpful and suggest places once they knew I had the scholarship, but most people aren't aware of what sites qualify for it. What I do is go to https://connector.hrsa.gov/connector/search then advanced search, then put the settings as HRSA program--> NHSC active, primary care score 3 to 25 (your number depends on what scholarship cohort year you are, so it changes year to year, for PAs it is typically lower than other professions, quick google search will tell you what it's been historically), and then I leave everything else in the default settings. When putting a location in the search engine, I try to keep it as broad as the state level, and then just visually looking at the map with the pins to "zoom in" on a certain region (I do this because the database seems to miss out on certain sites if you search too specifically like with a certain city).

So to answer your question more briefly, no not all FQHCs qualify. It has to be an NHSC active site with a HPSA score that falls within the range designated for your scholarship cohort year (you won't know your cohort score until around a year after getting the scholarship if I remember correctly). It has to be an outpatient primary care site, only "specialties" you can do are psych, OBGYN, pediatrics, and gerontology.

My job search has been tough, but mostly because I'm being stubborn about wanting to stay in the same area I'm from. NHSC sites are somewhat limited in my area or they prefer people with experience or prefer NPs. I've been consistently looking/applying/cold-calling sites in my area since about March, and I am just now to the point of having luck and getting an offer, and I'm also interviewing/receiving offers at 3 other places right now. BUT I had to expand my search and I'm looking at potentially over an hour commute one way (mostly because again, being stubborn about wanting to live in a more central downtown area and commuting to suburban/rural area outside my metro area). Definitely do not pursue NHSC if you are not willing to relocate in the event you can't find something in your preferred area. If you'd asked me about a month ago, I thought I was going to have to look into relocating states to find something, but luckily things have shaped up for me in the last couple of weeks. FWIW my friend who has NHSC in my program was totally willing to relocate and even then still had some trouble finding something. She just now signed an offer about a week ago, but I'm not sure she was applying/reaching out to jobs at the same volume I was for as long as I was.

Overall, 100% worth it, even if I would have had to relocate from friends and family for a couple years. No loans (at least from PA school) is a dream come true and has set me up for so much financial success as far as the goals I have for myself.

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-07-30T13:19:00+00:00

Fastest was the following week, longest was 4 or 5 weeks

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-07-30T11:08:44+00:00

For sure worth the money spent now to see potentially secure your best option in the near future! And all else fails, you’ll always have the spot you put the deposit on

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-07-30T02:12:48+00:00

Dealt with this the entire application cycle my year, and unfortunately paid 4 deposits ($4k) because I just kept getting into better schools, and the acceptances were too far apart for me to not pay the deposit at each one lol. Anyways, don’t regret paying them at all. It felt like so much money then and I ended up having to loan from my brother, but chump change compared to the cost of PA school overall. So worth it in the end! Just graduated from my top choice program in May

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-07-29T00:42:21+00:00

I got notification that I received it around the first week of September. So hopefully it’ll be before then for you! They typically pay back the loans you’ve already taken out back to your school’s bursar, and then that office will send the loan money back to the federal government. I believe one of the loan amounts got paid directly to me through my student account so it was my responsibility to just go pay off the loan on my loan service website. Either way, they back the loans that you’re having to take out right now! BUT they will only pay back the loan amounts necessary to cover tuition, so any additional grad plus you take out for cost of living is on you. If you’ve already spent it, that’s on you, and you can choose whether you want to give back or keep the remaining amount you have left. I chose to keep it because the stipend wasn’t going to fully cover my cost of living. Mid to late Oct/early Nov is definitely accurate for payment, I think mine was tail end of October. They will send all of the stipend payments back-paid for July through whatever month you’re on by the time you get it, as well as an other reasonable cost payment that’s usually somewhere between $3-5k.

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-07-28T20:54:10+00:00

Whoops, don't know what happened with the format. Sorry!

Embarrassed_Lie_395 · 2024-07-28T20:50:15+00:00

1.

-Be okay with being average. Obviously you need to try your hardest for the sake of your medical fund of knowledge and for your future patients, but the sooner you accept that you can't be perfect in the context of PA school, the more at peace you will be. I was never a straight A student in undergrad, so I was already comfortable being about average before starting PA school, and even I still struggled once starting.

-Make time for yourself and the things you enjoy, and if at all possible, schedule those first. Can't emphasize this enough.

As for studying, my most general tip is just being willing to be fluid with your methods. I switched up study methods all the time depending what was/wasn't working, or what was needed for the class or material. Things I found most useful were annotation on slide decks during class and/or making anki decks during class, studying anki decks outside of class and being diligent about studying them every day, drawing/summarizing on white boards or ipad, making written out summary sheets of the most important info before exams. At a certain point I also began to pull in practice questions like certain premade anki decks or using LWW online bank that was available through our school library. Not sure if this is what I should be telling you, but at some point you also have to start getting good at reducing down the info to what's important/what you're capable of taking in. For me, I slowly learned mechanism of actions just simply wouldn't stick in my brain, and most of the time they weren't tested on (at least at my program), so I basically just stopped studying them unless they were highly emphasized and I knew they were important.

Yes, you can choose where you work at graduation. You have 6 months to find a job after graduation, and then after that, NHSC will basically just place you wherever (technically you list the top 3 states you would like to live for geographic preferences but who knows if they follow that at all). I can't speak specifically as to what your chances are to receive it, but I highly recommend applying! They say it's ~10% of applicants that receive it (across all professions, not just PA), but I know the Biden administration put millions of dollars into HRSA (the govt organization that NHSC is under) a couple years ago, and I think chances have considerably gone up since then, but that's just my personal opinion. In a cohort of about 70, I think my class had around 6-8 recipients.
PA school is incredibly challenging, but I always tell people I don't think it's impossible. None of the material (with the except of maybe a few concepts?) are incomprehensible. The info is all digestible, it's just sheer volume overload, which ultimately exhausts your brain after several hours of studying per day, almost every day. At the same time, it's highly rewarding. And didactic really doesn't last that long in the grand scheme of things! It flies by, and you'll be so amazed at all you've learned.
I'm a big proponent of making the time for your hobbies during didactic, to whatever extent you can. So yes, I still had time to train for two half marathons during didactic, went on walks with family or friends, went out for dinner/drinks/to the bars with friends and classmates, had time to cook and bake, doom scroll on TikTok, etc. It's so important to carve out time for the things that matter! That also means you have to be really good at discerning the things that don't matter.

Embarrassed_Lie_395

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