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Fall 2001
Volume 2, Number 4
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Contents:
- Nominations to be Sought for PA Director-at-Large Positions
- NCCPA, AAPA Leaders To Meet
- Executive Director Hill Resigns
- Summary of Board Actions and Issues
- December Expirations Mean New Deadline, Fee Schedules for 2002
- Face-to-Face Feedback
- Q&A Corner
- Short Takes
- Dates and Deadlines
Nominations to be Sought for PA Director-at-Large Positions
At its November meeting, the NCCPA board of directors approved a process by which the three vacant PA director-at-large positions will be filled in the coming months.
Though at press time the timeline and other details were still being finalized, the basic process is in place and is as follows.
Certified physician assistants may self-nominate or be nominated by another individual certified physician assistant. All nomination packages must include three items:
- A letter of nomination, which must be signed by at least 10 certified physician assistants (not including the nominee),
- A completed application form, and
- The nominee’s current r’sumésumé or curriculum vitae.
NCCPA’s Nominating Committee will select at least six candidates for consideration by the board of directors in March. The three candidates who receive the most votes will be invited to fill the vacancies and attend the board’s next meeting in May.
In the interest of continuity, the terms of the incoming directors at large will be staggered so that all do not leave the board in the same year. One will serve a two-year term, one a three-year term and one a four-year term. All will be eligible for a full four-year second term.
In August, the board of directors created this new category of board seats for PA directors at large to increase representation of certified physician assistants. Two of the four at-large positions were filled at that same meeting when the board elected Katherine Adamson, MMS, MA, PA-C and Disty Pearson, PA-C, two board officers who had been removed from the board by AAPA earlier in the year.
When Adamson assumes the role of president on January 1, 2002, she will vacate the at-large seat she holds today, thus creating the third vacancy.
When all vacancies are filled in 2002, NCCPA’s board will include 10 PAs, nine physicians, one hospital administrator, one medical college educator and three public representatives.
Once finalized, application forms will be available online at NCCPA Connect or by calling 770.734.4500, pressing "6" to access NCCPA’s free fax-on-demand service and selecting document #120 when prompted to do so. Also, any interested parties may contact NCCPA in the interim, and staff will send the application form as soon as it is available. Send your request to Ragan Morrow or call 770.734.4500 to ask to be put on the waiting list for application forms.
NCCPA, AAPA Leaders To Meet
Representatives from NCCPA’s board of directors will meet with representatives from the American Academy of Physician Assistants on December 15 to discuss the issues that have divided the two groups.
NCCPA President Elaine E. Grant, MPH, PA-C reports that she’s had several conversations with AAPA President Ed Friedmann, PA-C and that the two have identified steps that they both hope will lead to a reconciliation of the two organizations. The December meeting is the first of those steps.
NCCPA will be represented at that meeting by Grant; incoming president, Katherine A. Adamson, MMS, MA, PA-C; incoming president elect, Gary Winchester, MD; and board member, Lee Bryan Smith, MD, JD. AAPA will be represented by Friedmann; Ina Cushman, PA-C, president elect; Richard Rohrs, PA-C, director at large; and Rodney Richmond, PA-C, student representative.
Executive Director Hill Resigns
Kate Hill, MEd, who has served as NCCPA’s executive director and chief staff officer since 1996, has resigned from that position.
"The last five years have been a time of great change for NCCPA, but I believe my work has come to a close," says Hill, who is only the second executive director to lead the organization since its 1975 establishment. "It has been an extraordinary experience, but it is time for me to move on to new challenges."
She will continue to work with NCCPA leaders and staff as a consultant on an as-needed basis for an indefinite period of time to help facilitate a transition.
"Kate has been a strong force in making this organization what it is today," said NCCPA President Elaine Grant, MPH, PA-C. "During her tenure, NCCPA has significantly strengthened the quality and integrity of the exam development, administration and scoring processes. The credential is stronger today than it was five years ago, and the efficiency and effectiveness of the organization has increased exponentially thanks to Kate’s leadership and vision. We thank her for her outstanding work and commitment."
Grant added that the board will not rush to fill the vacancy but will take time to carefully determine what qualities they want in the organization’s next executive director. In the meantime, NCCPA’s associate executive director, Janet Lathrop, will serve as interim executive director. Both Hill and Grant expressed confidence in Lathrop.
Says Hill, "Janet has been my right hand for the last two years and has done an incredible job overseeing the core business and operations of NCCPA. It’s in large part a credit to her that I feel so comfortable leaving NCCPA at this time."
Grant echoes, "Janet has the knowledge and experience to see the organization through this transition. NCCPA will not skip a beat under her direction."
Since joining the NCCPA staff in 1997, Lathrop has served as director of the certification services department, overseeing the CME logging, reregistration and exam administration departments, and since late 1999, she has served as the associate executive director.
December Expirations Mean New Deadline, Fee Schedules for 2002
In 2002, PAs who are scheduled to log CME and/or complete the reregistration process will encounter later deadlines and a compressed late processing fee schedule, all designed to further streamline the process and make it more user-friendly for PAs.
Beginning next year, CME logging forms, reregistration applications and accompanying fees will be due on or before September 30, rather than the July 31 deadline in place this year. The later deadline gives PAs two full months to log CME earned all the way up until the end of the CME earning window, which closes on June 30.
NCCPA will begin issuing certificates for the next cycle during the last quarter of the year. Everyone who submits all fees and paperwork prior to the September 30 deadline will receive their new certificate before their old one expires on December 31.
However, NCCPA staff encourages PAs to continue to log CME as it is earned and avoid the stress of finding out late in the year that more hours are needed.
"We’re moving the deadlines to make it easier for more PAs to get all of their requirements met and avoid late processing fees. But procrastination is still the enemy, and we’re certainly not encouraging anyone to delay logging CME," says Nikki Tullis, NCCPA’s manager of certification maintenance.
PAs who fail to meet the September 30 deadlines for CME logging and reregistration will be assessed a $50 late processing fee.
"So plan ahead, submit all required hours, paperwork and payments before the end of September to avoid that late fee," urges Tullis.
Face-to-Face Feedback
NCCPA leaders have been on the road this year, meeting with PAs face-to-face whenever and wherever possible to present information about NCCPA certification and hear directly from PAs on issues of interest to them.
In 2001, they’ve addressed conference goers in Minnesota, Arizona, Georgia, Texas, Connecticut, Michigan and Maryland.
NCCPA representatives have also spoken to students at PA programs across the country and to members of the Association of Physician Assistant Programs. Still other meetings have been conducted with members of the Association of Physician Assistants in Cardiovascular Surgery, the Physican Assistant Surgical Congress and the Association of Family Practice Physician Assistants.
Plans for more meetings in 2002 are underway.
Q&A Corner
Q. I heard that I have to pay NCCPA a CME logging fee every time I submit hours - even if it’s just one or two. Is that right?
A. No! NCCPA’s CME logging fee is payable only once during every two-year logging cycle, and you can pay it any time during that two-year period. So please log your CME as you earn it if it’s more convenient to do so. There’s no financial incentive to save it all up for a single online logging session or a single paper form.
Q. Do I need to send you all of my receipts and certificates with my CME?
A. No, but you should save them because we will randomly audit CME every year, beginning with the 2000-2002 CME logging cycle. If you’re chosen for auditing, you’ll need to provide documentation then.
Q. I logged my CME with AAPA; have I completed everything for reregistration?
A. There are two processes for certification maintenance: (1) earn and log 100 CME hours with AAPA or NCCPA and (2) complete a reregistration application and pay the reregistration fee directly to NCCPA. To complete this process, go to PA Online. Once both processes are complete, we will send you a new certificate.
Q. What can I do at PA Online?
A. You can view your personal certification maintenance checklist, log CME, complete the reregistration application, apply for an exam, find out if you passed your latest exam and submit fees.
Short Takes
- Ninety-two percent of the 4,188 who took PANCE for the first time in 2001 passed; of the total population of this year’s PANCE examinees (4,994), 85 percent passed.
- Of the 4,142 who took PANRE in 2001, 95 percent passed.
- At press time, all fall Pathway II exam scores weren’t in, but 94 percent of the 1,133 who took the take-at-home exam in spring 2001 passed.
Dates and Deadlines
Click here for a current listing of dates and deadlines.
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