Physician assistants ("PAs") have been on the medical scene for years, with a growing trend that consistently sees more of them practicing in hospitals, clinics and emergency rooms.

What do doctors think of them? Are they perceived, for example, as a heightened medical malpractice risk? Are they fitting in well in the physician/PA team approach that is now the norm in many medical facilities?

That was the central inquiry in a medical study just released in the Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants, given that, as noted by the study's authors, relatively few studies have ever really considered such questions.

The strong finding from the 2009 study of 724 emergency physicians, which should give PAs a firm measure of confidence and satisfaction: When properly trained and supervised, PAs pose about the same liability risk as do doctors.

Based on the numbers, though, that conclusion can be argued two different ways. Nearly 68 percent of the respondents from the American College of Emergency Physicians said that PAs are no more apt to be sued for negligence than are doctors, which means, of course, that nearly one third of the physician respondents think that a higher risk does exist where PAs are involved.

Still, the positive view concerning physician assistants' competence is prevalent, and researchers think it will grow as PAs become more firmly entrenched in their positions.

More than 90 percent of study respondents also concluded that PAs help reduce patient waiting times, and 75 percent say that they also increase patient satisfaction.

Related Resource: American Medical News, "Most physicians don't see PAs as major liability risks" July 6, 2011