-- Degree Options for 2009 --

The MEDEX Northwest Website in being updated with new information regarding degree options. Please check back
for new information on April 15th, 2008.

MEDEX Northwest Physician Assistant Training

MEDEX Northwest, UW School of Medicine, is a program designed to train physician assistants. The Program has been in existence since 1978 and is accredited by ARC-PA, the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant. MEDEX currently trains approximately 80 students a year in three didactic training sites (Seattle, Yakima and Spokane). Plans are currently underway to have a
fourth training site in Anchorage, AK. Students return to their home communities in the WWAMI region (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, Idaho) plus a variety of sites in Oregon and Nevada for their clinical year of training.

MEDEX Northwest is an eight-quarter program in 2009 for Bachelor's students and a nine-quarter program for the Master’s students. The first four quarters consist of intense clinical and didactic instruction at one of the didactic training sites. The final four quarters are spent in clinical experiences through the Northwest region. The summer quarter between the first and second year will be required for Master’s students. At the completion of the program, students are eligible to sit for the National Certifying Exam for Physician Assistants.

Admissions Criteria

Applicants applying for either the bachelors option or masters option must have a minimum of two years of recent, full-time equivalent,
hands-on experience in the delivery of medical care to patients, or current professional credentials and at least two years of recent
experience in an allied health field. Academic prerequisites will be different for those applying for the bachelor option and the master’s
option so it is best to refer to the MEDEX web site for the most current and up-to-date academic prerequisites.

MEDEX Northwest is planning to offer both a Bachelor of Clinical Health Services Degree and a Masters of Clinical Health Services Degree beginning in 2009. The Bachelor’s option will be available at MEDEX training sites in Yakima, WA and Anchorage, AK. The Masters option
will be available to students in the Spokane and Seattle training sites. Approval is currently being requested to proceed with offering both degree options.

Bachelor of Clinical Health Services: Candidates without a prior bachelor’s degree will apply to the sites offering a bachelors completion
option. They will need to meet both MEDEX prerequisite requirements and UW admission requirements applicable to transfer students. Students will pursue an eight-quarter sequence of prescribed studies in the MEDEX Northwest Physician Assistant Training Program. Admission to the professional program is competitive and administered by MEDEX Northwest within the School of Medicine. Because of
the program’s emphasis on prior medical experience, the great majority of applicants are working adults who have completed their pre-professional undergraduate coursework at other college and universities. Students graduating with the BCHS degree must meet general
UW graduation requirements in addition to completing MEDEX.

MEDEX students must be admitted into the bachelor’s option during their time in physician assistant training in order for their MEDEX coursework to be considered as matriculated credits. Matriculation in the Bachelor of Clinical Health Services degree option is dependent
upon both acceptance by MEDEX and admission to the University of Washington in the degree option. Students enrolled at UAA may elect to meet the Alaska graduation requirements and get the BS degree from the University of Alaska - Anchorage. For more information regarding application procedures, academic and clinical prerequisites please call 206 616-4001 or refer to the MEDEX web site.

Masters of Clinical Health Services: Candidates applying for the Masters Option must meet both MEDEX and UW Graduate School requirements. A Prior baccalaureate degree is required (no major preference), MEDEX specific academic prerequisite courses, an
overall GPA minimum of 3.0 or higher for the last 2 years of coursework equal to 90 quarter credits or 60 semester credits and take the GRE. TOEFL is required by the Graduate School for international applicants who did not complete a bachelor’s degree at an institution in the US, UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand or Canada.

Students in the Masters option will continue to participate in the same core physician assistant curriculum, which focuses on primary care and improving health care access for the medically underserved. In addition, students in the master’s level program elect to focus on one specific area, which will offer advanced skills and knowledge in their chosen focus area. The four areas to choose from will be:

• Rural and underserved healthcare
• Public health and healthcare administration
• Specialty practice and PA education
• Global health

With faculty guidance, students will develop and complete an individual capstone project within their selected pathway. Projects will be presented to faculty and fellow students before graduation. The Masters option will expand the program to a total of nine quarters requiring students to be enrolled the summer quarter between the first and second years of the program.

Masters specific curriculum content is being developed and no course numbers have been assigned. Content will cover Investigative Skills, Leadership Development, Current PA Issues and Trends, Master Project Design, Implementation and Presentation.

More information about the Extended Masters of Clinical Health Services will be available soon. Keep watching the MEDEX Northwest website for new and interesting information.

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