Thomas Jefferson University Opens Physician Assistant Program

Thomas Jefferson University officially marked the opening ofthe College of Health Professions Physician Assistant Program in Voorhees, NewJersey.

"Moving the New Jersey physician assistant program to Voorhees allows us to offer our students a convenient location for their studies," says Dr. Michael Dryer, dean of the Jefferson College of Health Professions. "Everything they need is under one roof, with neighboring Jefferson Health New Jersey facilities as the backdrop."

Physician assistant has been named one of the fastest growing professions in the U.S. by the Bureau of Labor & Statistics, with an expected 38.4 percent increase in jobs by 2020. With this in mind, the new, state-of-the-art campus features a 60-seat classroom; a physical diagnosis laboratory; an Anatomy Lab equipped with 12 cadaver tables, individual computers at each station and Apple TV for online learning and research; and a Simulation Center which includes Auscultation Simulators, an iStan Adult Patient Simulator, primary care rooms, emergency room bays, and inpatient hospital rooms.

"Having students train and learn in New Jerseyincreases the likelihood that they will stay and practice in New Jersey,"says Jesse Coale, director of Jefferson's Physician Assistant Program."There is a shortage of physicians in the United States in general, and physicianassistants will help fill this gap."