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REPRESENT! NCCPA Summit® 2024 Underscores Urgent Need for Diversity in PA Profession

The biennial REPRESENT! NCCPA Summit 2024, “When They See Us,” was held on Sept. 16-17 in Atlanta, providing an opportunity for more than 170 attendees to connect and exchange ideas on boosting diversity, equity and inclusion within the PA profession.

Participants shared stories and focused on supporting each other through in-depth best practices for DEI implementation, breakout group discussions, insightful keynote speakers, scientific poster presentations and networking.

Dawn Morton-Rias, Ed.D, PA-C, ICE-CCP, FACHE, who became NCCPA President and CEO in 2014, recalled when NCCPA began publishing quarterly reports on PA demographics and workforce data.

“What I saw was alarming — a continued, multi-year trend of decreasing racial diversity in the profession, at the same time, the diversity of our nation and its patients continued to increase,” Morton-Rias said.

While research shows that patients experience better health care outcomes when cared by providers of a similar ethnic and cultural background, the PA profession had remained predominantly white.

“It became clear that we needed to take action to reverse this trend,” Morton-Rias said.

In 2022, NCCPA held the inaugural REPRESENT! Summit to facilitate a conversation with PAs, PA faculty, and the leaders from AAPA, PAEA and ARC-PA to weave principles of DEI in the PA profession. Last year, at the Cross-Org assembly, the four PA organizations demonstrated their commitment to DEI by agreeing to dedicate staff and time to address this important profession-wide initiative.

At the most recent summit, Shani Fleming, Ph.D, MPH, PA-C, Associate Professor and Chief Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Officer at the University of Maryland-Baltimore, presented, “Current Landscape of DEI in the PA Profession.”

“Racial and ethnic health disparities are personal,” Fleming said, after the summit. “It’s up to each of us to take action and increase representation within our profession.”

Clinically practicing PAs, PA faculty, leaders of PA organizations, physicians, and PA students from across the country were engaged in the 2-day event.

For Alexis Newton, a PA-S2 at the University of Southern California Keck Primary Care Program, attending the REPRESENT! Summit was inspiring and deeply fulfilling experience.

Newton was a panelist in, “Toward Antiracism in PA Education Through a Restorative Lens,” moderated by Daytheon Sturges, Ph.D, MPAS, PA-C, DFAAPA, MCHES, Associate Professor at the University of Washington School of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine Vice Chair for Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

“As a PA student, it’s easy to feel like our voice doesn’t matter, but this summit showed me the opposite,” Newton said. “I left feeling empowered and equipped with tangible strategies to implement real, lasting change. The sessions were thought-provoking, led by passionate and insightful leaders who challenged me to reflect on my role in health care and how I can better contribute to our profession’s progress.”

Newton said the camaraderie among attendees fostered a space for meaningful connections, reminding her that, “We are all part of something greater.”

“These bonds renewed my sense of purpose and reaffirmed my commitment to making a positive impact as a future PA-C,” Newton said. “By engaging in these essential conversations and working toward a more inclusive future, we are not only helping patients feel better represented by their providers, but also fueling the continued growth of our profession.”

Fleming added: “Take action. Do something — one thing — to help a student of color enter the profession. The time to act is now!”

For more information on REPRESENT! NCCPA Summit, visit https://www.nccpa.net/represent-summit.

View a photo gallery of REPRESENT! NCCPA Summit 2024 on Facebook, click here.

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