Program Competencies
UTRGV Physician Assistant graduates are required to demonstrate successful mastery of the following seven (7) program competencies before graduation and entry into clinical practice. These program competencies include the effective and appropriate application of medical knowledge, interpersonal, clinical and technical skills, professional behaviors, clinical reasoning and problem-solving abilities required for PA practice within each of the following seven program competencies:
- Successfully obtain a comprehensive patient medical history.
- Perform a focused and comprehensive physical exam on patients across the lifespan (infant, child, adolescent, adult, and elderly).
- Order and correctly interpret laboratory, radiologic and other diagnostic studies.
- Demonstrate higher order critical thinking and medical decision-making skills to develop a comprehensive list of differential diagnoses.
- Formulate a management/treatment plan that incorporates evidence-based medicine and current recommendation guidelines for acute, chronic, and preventive patient encounters.
- Provide patient education on the following topics:
-
- Illness and disease
- Treatment options
- Health promotion and disease prevention
- Lifestyle risk factors
- Demonstrate the following interpersonal skills and professional behaviors necessary for effective communication with peers, faculty, and patients: professional responsibility, competence, maturity, and integrity.