Educational Objectives

VISION

We aspire to be a leader in physician assistant (PA) education whose diverse graduates provide superior healthcare within the communities they serve.

MISSION

The University of Maryland Baltimore Graduate School (UMB) and its PA program promote excellence in education to foster the development of competent, ethical and compassionate primary care providers. Together, we value diversity, lifelong learning, research, and scholarship.

To achieve this mission, we prioritize both academic achievement and professionalism.  We expect our students to embody virtues of integrity, honesty, respect, and ethical behavior, which form the foundation for their journey toward becoming exceptional healthcare professionals. 

GOALS 

1. Educate PA students to practice medicine services in an ethical, safe, legal, and competent manner consistent with state laws.
   
   • Outcome 1.1 UMB PA students complete a course in the didactic year in legal/ethical issues. During the clinical year, students complete courses in behavioral and social issues, improving quality of care, and issues and trends in healthcare that includes medicolegal issues regarding safe and ethical practice. Data from the classes of 2023 and 2024 indicates 100% of students successfully completed these courses with a grade of 83% or higher.
   • Outcome 1.2 Clinical preceptors who include licensed physicians and PAs, evaluate students during clerkships to determine competence and safety for practice. Data from the Class of 2022 indicate 100% of graduating students were evaluated as safe and competent for clinical practice. Data for the classes of 2023 and 2024 will be available upon graduation.
2. Provide educational and clinical experiences that prepare the PA student to work collaboratively and lead interprofessional teams.
   • Outcome 2.1 Both didactic and clinical year students participate in an annual Interprofessional Education (IPE) Day on the UMB campus. This event includes students from the Schools of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Social Work and Law.
   • Outcome 2.3 Students work in diverse clinical settings on interprofessional healthcare teams and volunteer in leadership roles in health professions student government across campus. Since 2016, students participate in interprofessional education opportunities at Area Healthcare Education Centers (AHEC) across the state of Maryland.
   • Outcome 2.3 Clinical preceptors evaluate students during clerkships to determine interprofessional teamwork skills. Data from the Class of 2022 indicate 100% of graduating students met the minimum benchmark of ‘average’ with 97.5% evaluated as ‘above average’ or ‘excellent’ in interprofessional teamwork. Data for the classes of 2023 and 2024 will be available upon graduation.
3. Foster a professional environment that underscores the significance of advancing education through further study and continuous learning, emphasizing the application of evidence-based, person-centered healthcare. 
   
   • Outcome 3.1 The program includes courses in biostatistics, epidemiology, social and behavioral theory, improving quality of care in health systems, and library resources to enable students to acquire skills in evidence-based and patient-centered medicine.
   • Outcome 3.2 Since 2016, all students have been provided MdAPA membership and attend annual continuing medical educational conferences with an opportunity to showcase their capstone projects.
   • Outcome 3.3 Beginning with the Class of 2024, all students are provided with student membership in AAPA to assist in better understanding of continuing education and advanced practice opportunities.
4. Provide students with educational opportunities and a variety of clinical experiences that enable them to recognize social determinants of health and work effectively in all primary care settings including underserved and diverse communities.
   • Outcome 4.1 The program includes courses in epidemiology and clinically applied social and behavioral health theory that address social determinants of health. Diverse clinical experiences are included during clerkships with rotations in urban, suburban, and rural areas, Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC), LGBTQIA+ clinics, and urban hospitals such as the Shock Trauma center in downtown Baltimore. Students in the Class of 2024 are completing a gerontology elective clerkship with the UMB Graduate School in Japan. The program is working to develop additional global elective clerkship opportunities and anticipate having the second international clinical elective available in summer 2024.
5. Equip students with the skills and knowledge to excel as effective communicators, educators, and responsible community members.  Foster the development of critical-thinking skills in the didactic and clinical settings, encouraging students to base their practice on evidence-based, person-centered health care, and instill a commitment to sound ethical values. 
   
   • Outcome 5.1 UMB PA students complete a course in legal/ethical issues in in medicine in the first semester of the curriculum. Data indicate all students in the classes of 2023 and 2024 successfully passed this course with a grade of 83% or higher.
   • Outcome 5.2 Students are evaluated by preceptors during clinical year on communication, patient education, critical thinking, and evidence-based and patient-centered medicine. Data from preceptor evaluations of students in the class of 2022 indicate all students received ratings of above average or excellent in interpersonal communication, prevention/health maintenance, developing differential diagnoses and a working diagnosis, and practicing evidence-based medicine. Data for the classes of 2023 and 2024 will be available upon graduation.
   • Outcome 5.3 During the Clinical Correlations course, students complete a telehealth certificate to aid in effective communication, patient education, and patient-centered medicine. All students in the Classes of 2022 and 2023 earn this certificate prior to graduation. All students of the Class of 2024 successfully earned the telehealth certificate prior to entering the clinical year of the program.
6. Enable students to meet the eligibility requirements and successfully pass the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) certifying examination upon graduation.
   • Outcome 6.1 The UMB PA Program has a 5-year first-time taker average pass rate of 97% on the NCCPA certifying exam. This exceeds the national rate of 94%. Exam pass rates for individual cohorts can be found by visiting 5 Year Pance Report PDF.
   • Outcome 6.2 Students can meet eligibility requirements for the NCCPA certifying exam as evidenced by attrition rates for the program linked here.