Physician assistants are health care professionals licensed, or in the case of those employed by the federal government they are credentialed, to practice medicine with physician supervision. As part of their comprehensive responsibilities, PAs conduct physical exams, diagnose and treat illnesses, order and interpret tests, counsel on preventive health care, assist in surgery, and write prescriptions. Within the physician-PA relationship, physician assistants exercise autonomy in medical decision making and provide a broad range of diagnostic and therapeutic services. A PA's practice may also include education, research, and administrative services.

Nurse practitioners are registered nurses who are prepared, through advanced education and clinical training, to provide a wide range of preventive and acute health care services to individuals of all ages. NPs complete graduate-level education preparation that leads to a master's degree. NPs take health histories and provide complete physical examinations; diagnose and treat many common acute and chronic problems; interpret laboratory results and x-rays; prescribe and manage medications and other therapies; provide health teaching and supportive counseling with an emphasis on prevention of illness and health maintenance; and refer patients to other health professionals as needed.

While NPs and PAs often perform similar functions, there are important distinctions between these health care professionals:

• NPs may work independently or in collaboration with a physician and must have an RN license before being accepted into an NP educational program. Almost all NPs are educationally prepared at the master's level. NPs are authorized to practice as advanced practice nurses by individual state regulating boards. NPs assess patients, make diagnoses, and determine treatment plans. Aspects of the role may include autonomous practice collaboration with physicians, and prescriptive authority.
  
  

• PAs are licensed to practice medicine with the supervision of a physician. PAs are trained in intensive accredited education programs that use the medical model. Upon graduation, physician assistants take a national certification examination; graduation from an accredited physician assistant program and passage of the national certifying exam are required for state licensure.

An FNP comes from a nursing background while a PA generally has a different health career background. Their respective fields have quite different origins and histories. They operate under different state laws and titles. However, their roles in the health field can be so similar that the UC Davis FNP/PA Program educates these professionals together.

FNP and PA Professional Organizations