Analysis of Institutional Financial Stability and Physician Assistant Program Accreditation Outcomes.

INTRODUCTION

Many institutions are facing financial challenges that may adversely affect physician assistant (PA) programs. This study examines the relationship between the financial stability of private, nonprofit institutions offering entry-level PA programs and accreditation outcomes.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study explored a possible association between Composite Financial Index of sponsoring institutions for 3 years preceding the most recent ARC-PA review and the program's accreditation outcome for reviews between 2017 and 2023. Institutional characteristics were summarized for programs experiencing positive compared with adverse accreditation outcomes. Logistic regression was used to examine the association between Composite Financial Index and accreditation outcome while controlling for the effects of institutional characteristics and program's time since initial accreditation.

RESULTS

The study included 144 PA programs (119 with positive accreditation outcomes, 25 with adverse outcomes). Almost all PA programs studied are financially stable. Institutional characteristics were unrelated to specialized accreditation status. "Insufficient human resources" was the most cited issue (17 instances), affecting 3.4% of programs with positive outcomes and 52% with adverse outcomes ( P < .001). The average time between initial accreditation and the most recent review was significantly longer for programs with adverse outcomes ( P = .02). Each additional year between the initial accreditation and most recent review increased the odds of an adverse accreditation outcome by 4%.

DISCUSSION: While new insights about accreditation success were found, questions remain about which financial measures predict an institution's ability to support PA programs. Future research should investigate why longer running programs face more adverse outcomes.