PAGH Mission Statement
To promote and support domestic and international global health activities of PAs and PA students which focus on improvement of medical care, health care systems access, research, academic, and administrative support in areas with health professional shortages.
Our History: PAGH was originally formed at the request of AAPA, who sought to have an organization who could answer questions for interested PA's about clinical practice abroad. PAGH is a caucus branch of the AAPA and a 501(c)3 organization. While historically PA's wanted to find information on short-term trips to gain clinical experience abroad, increasingly more PA's are looking to move abroad for longer periods of time. In effort to have the most up-to-date information we can for our members, we now offer information on everything from short-term, unpaid trips, to a list of countries that have a PA profession. While the potential to receive a license to practice medicine abroad is still very limited, we network heavily with PA leaders in nearly every country that has a model of our profession. We continue to work together in order to collaborate and support one another, in hopes that the PA profession will continue to expand globally.
Our Vision
PAGH will provide information to those in the physician assistant and associated professions regarding short and long term global health opportunities and education in global health topics.
Our purpose:
A global deficit of qualified health care professionals exists. PAGH will contribute to the solution of this situation by fostering the use and exposure of qualified Physician Assistants worldwide.
New instead: A global deficit of qualified health care professionals exists. PAGH will contribute to the solution by providing support, resources, and information which enables the PA profession to provide medical care and tertiary support services (administrative, teaching, research) to those in need worldwide.
PAGH will do this by:
A. Encouraging the sustainable development of the PA profession to meet the perpetual need for qualified healthcare professionals worldwide
B. Providing physician assistants and PA students with the means to enhance their knowledge and skills in providing comprehensive healthcare to the medically underserved populations worldwide through an annual conference, online resources through the PAGH website, and quarterly newsletters.
C. Offering opportunities for physician assistants to network with other health care providers and/or organizations that share the common goal of improving the condition of healthcare worldwide, thereby ensuring the continued involvement and utilization of physician assistants as an integral part of the solution.
D. Promoting the ethical duty for volunteerism among PAs by developing and maintaining a regularly updated database of domestic and international volunteer and career opportunities for PAGH members.
E. Establishing and maintaining a 501c3 tax exempt status for PAGH which enhances the abilities of the organization to obtain various means of assistance to further its mission.
F. Collaborate with other international organizations that support and advocate for physician assistants and PA like professionals to expand international and domestic opportunities.
G. Other activities and actions approved by the Board of Directors to promote the Vision, Mission, and Purposes of the Physician Assistants for Global Health organization.
We do not:
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Organize our own PAGH trips, we want to help connect PAs with trips and educate you for work in underserved areas
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Create PA programs in other countries though we feel the presence of PAs in other countries will facilitate the use of the PA model
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Create student rotations or validate student rotations but we do support PA students and provide resources for PA students