Physician assistant graduates pledge to serve with compassion and skill

After 27 months of rigorous study and one final week of exams, graduating physician assistant (PA) students gathered last week to recite the Physician Assistant Professional Oath. This marks their final milestone at the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis before they move on to the national certification exam and clinical practice.

The joyous event Friday brought together students, faculty and alumni to celebrate the transition from the classroom to patient care. The Professional Oath, a solemn pledge to serve patients with compassion, integrity and respect, has long been a tradition for those entering the PA profession.

The meaning of the oath

Program Director Teresa Thetford reminded students that compassion should fuel their approach.

"One of the most essential aspects of health care delivery is not just the science and medicine, but also compassion," she said. "Compassion is one of the more challenging things for us to teach and for students to learn, because adult learners come with their own history, opinions, and values."

Some of the principles the future PAs promise to abide by include:

• To hold as my primary responsibility the health, safety, welfare and dignity of all human beings.
• To uphold the tenets of patient autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice.
• To commit myself to lifelong learning and to maintain the highest standards of medical knowledge and skills.

The ceremony also featured remarks by Shea Smith, from the Class of 2019, who now practices as director of patient navigation and lead clinician at the Acorn Health Group wellness center in Yuba City. She encouraged the class to lean on one another and to stay grounded in the values they have cultivated during their training.

"As you take this oath, remember everything you've studied, sacrificed and endured becomes more than a degree. It becomes a promise not only to your patients, but to yourself," Smith shared. "Success in medicine is not found in a résumé. It is found in the humanity you bring to the exam room and in the lives you improve because you chose to care."

Preparing for clinical practice

The oath ceremony represents the culmination of a demanding educational journey. Over the past 27 months, PA students have studied anatomy, pharmacology and medical ethics, while completing thousands of hours of clinical rotations in hospitals and community clinics. With school exams behind them, the next challenge is the Physician Assistant National Certifying Exam (PANCE), which serves as the final gateway to clinical practice.

PAs are advanced practice providers who bring unique value to the health care team. Trained across multiple specialties, PAs work closely with physicians, nurses and other professionals to diagnose illness, develop treatment plans and care for patients. Their ability to adapt to diverse clinical settings helps expand access to care, particularly in rural or underserved communities. In many health care settings, PAs are increasingly stepping into the role of primary care provider.

Some School of Nursing PA alums work at UC Davis Health, in specialties such as orthopedics, plastic and reconstructive surgery, neurology and oncology.

"Our graduates don't just step into the workforce. They step into our health system as highly skilled, compassionate leaders," Thetford added. "With strong critical thinking, the ability to lead and the experience of learning in an interprofessional environment, they complement the strengths of every team they join and keep patients at the center of all they do."

The ceremony concluded with applause, cheers and smiles that filled the room - a celebration of the students' accomplishments and the promise of how they will contribute to the health system. The oath marks their transition from students to health care providers, ready to put their training into practice.