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Job of the Week: Physician Assistant

Smiling man with stethoscope aroun neck in front of computer.
Wayne Nielson, a physician assistant in primary care at the Pocatello VA Community Clinic.

Physician Assistants are health care providers who serve in all areas of the health care system. They are dedicated to expanding Veteran patients access to care.

Physician assistants practice medicine in all medical and surgical specialties. Primary care and surgery are the two services at VA Salt Lake City with the most physician assistants, but they also serve in specialty care settings such as: neurosurgery, hematology/oncology, endocrinology, sleep medicine, emergency medicine, cardiology, dermatology, hepatology, urology, ENT, mental health, anesthesiology, telehealth (Clinical Resource Hub), and geriatrics and extended care. Additionally, physician assistants serve Veterans in our Idaho Falls, Pocatello, Ogden, Orem and St. George community clinics.

“We are the primary care provider for the patients we see.” said Wayne Nielson, a physician assistant in primary care at the Pocatello VA Community Clinic.

Nielson has worked in the Pocatello Clinic for over ten years. He started off his medical career as an audiologist but went back to school to become a physician assistant. He served his rotation at the primary care clinic at the George E. Wahlen VA Medical Center in Salt Lake City, and then worked at a community hospital in southern Utah before finding his way back to VA.

He likes working for the VA because the Veteran’s health is the center of attention. While working in a community clinic does have its disadvantages, he says there are plenty of  advantages.

“You get a lot of one-on-one time with the patients, and you get to know them and them you,” said Nielson.

As we wrap up National Physician Assistant week, we thank all of our Physician Assistants for their dedication to our Veterans and their families.

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