‘They said not to worry, then I was made redundant’: Uncertainty continues for PAs in primary care

Posed by a model. Credit: Getty/SolStock

By Emma Wilkinson

Ahead of the publication of the Leng review, Doctors.net.uk looks into the impact the lack of clarity around PAs in primary care is having on GPs and those in the controversial role.

The outcome of a government-commissioned review into the safety of physician associate (PA) roles is due this summer.

Former NICE chief executive Professor Gillian Leng, who is looking at cost-effectiveness of the role and how it should be supervised, has admitted she is “walking a tightrope”.

Put in place after serious concerns were raised by medical leaders about regulation and scope of practice, the review has found PAs had been employed to fill gaps where doctors could not be recruited which Professor Leng said “was concerning for a number of reasons”.

Yet the only clue she has given away on the recommendations so far has been that a change in the name of PAs “could add clarity”.

General practices who have been left navigating how to safely employ PAs - who may have been with them for many years - are hoping the review will provide some clear answers.