The University of Pittsburgh Department of Physician Assistant Studies (PAS) continues to forge its reputation as one of the leading academic departments impacting the physician assistant (PA) profession. School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (SHRS) Vice Dean and PAS Associate Professor David C. Beck has been named the Pennsylvania Society of Physician Assistants (PSPA) Physician Assistant of the Year, which honors a PA who has demonstrated exemplary service to the profession and the community, and has furthered the image of PAs.
Beck says of the award, “I appreciate the recognition, but everything I am part of is a team effort. We’ve worked relentlessly in our PA Studies Department to support the needs of our current and future PA colleagues through innovations in our programs. From the advancements we’ve made in the on-campus PA program to new initiatives like the entry-level Master of Science in PA Studies Hybrid program, our APP leadership certificate course and the online Doctor of PA Studies (DPAS) program, I am very proud of what our team at Pitt has achieved and I am excited to see what we can make happen next. Particularly exciting is our DPAS program, led by its founding director, Dr. Mary Allias, which delivers a meaningful and relevant curriculum to help our PA colleagues make research-based improvements to help the patients and practices they serve.”
This history of PA excellence at Pitt continues after Adjunct Assistant Professor Amy Haller was recognized as PSPA Physician Assistant of the Year in 2022 and seven PA Studies faculty--including Beck—have been honored as PSPA Physician Assistant Educator of the Year every year since 2017, including this year’s recipient, Assistant Professor Toni Wilson.
PSPA Awards Chair Helen O. Hiserman says of Beck’s award, “We are honored and proud to present the 2023 Physician Assistant of the Year award to Dr. David Beck as he has been stellar for the PA profession as an avid educator and mentor, but has also made the profession more visible in the community advocating for education of those in underserved communities and working tirelessly to promote the PA profession in the public sphere with major health networks and health organizations. He is a topnotch advocate for Pennsylvania PAs through and through!”
PAS Hybrid students working together at their immersion class in Pittsburgh
A Visionary in PA Studies
Beck began his career as a PA and an educator in rural Pennsylvania then came to Pitt in 2009 as the new PA program’s first faculty member. He led the initiative for the PAS program to become SHRS’ seventh department in 2019 and was named as its first chair.
When asked about his vision for the future of the PA profession, for health care, and ultimately for patients, Beck says, “I share the goal with many colleagues and organizations of broadening the application of ‘value-based care.’ Such care aligns providers and patients to work together to optimize health, wellness, independence and performance.”
He continues, “PAs have a significant role in--and often lead--care coordination and shared decision-making with those we serve. I am proud to be a member of a profession that is focused on achieving the best possible outcomes through a high standard of care that focuses on the individual goals and needs of each patient. I believe all our entry-level, advanced degree and continuing education programming at Pitt provides a way for current and future PAs to thrive in and advance a value-based care system, especially through our quality improvement (QI) efforts.”
Beck and the Pitt PA faculty have created a welcoming academic environment that encourages practicing PAs to pursue continuing education and supports them through their journey. “It takes courage to push ourselves past our current boundaries and learn,” Beck says, “and continuing education for any PA advances the profession overall. My vision is to help individual PAs and the profession grow by using our expertise and tools at Pitt to provide a variety of affordable and effective professional development and continuing education opportunities.”
A Focus on DPAS
While Beck is known as “the founder of the DPAS program,” he and the faculty brought their collective experiences together to develop a doctoral program that would meet the continuing education needs of PA professionals. He says they began the program for many reasons. “We recognized the interest in career growth by our PA colleagues, that the competencies of our profession call for leadership and QI skills that are not developed enough in entry-level or many of the other doctoral programs for PAs. Health care systems have developed ‘career ladders’ for PA promotion and salary increases that prefer additional degrees and successful completion of QI projects that benefit patients and practices. Here at Pitt, we realized we were a team of award-winning and internationally recognized faculty trained in these skills who could develop a program to address all the above while minimizing the cost and making it accessible to our fellow PAs.”
Spring 2023 graduates of the Pitt DPAS program
The PA Studies Department has made tremendous strides in only a few years. “I’ve been excited to see the growth and advancements happening in each of our programs,” observes Beck, “most notably the true dedication to ‘walk the talk’ by continuously improving and innovating everything we do based on feedback from our PA colleagues. A recent example is the development of digital health content by Dr. Dipu Patel. I am eager to see how the programs of our department continue to teach skills and knowledge needed by PAs in the field today and tomorrow.”
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Published October 5, 2023