PA salaries continue to slowly increase according to the AAPA 2002 Census Survey. The average total income for all respondents that were full-time clinical practice was $72, 241 in 2002. This represents an increase of 1.7% from 2001, higher then the rate of inflation for 2002 of 1.5%.

This year's survey showed the less you know the higher your raise. PAs with one to three years of experience had an average increase of 6%, those with three to 15 years had 3%, while those with more than 15 years of experience only had a raise of 2%.

When this survey and the 2002 AAPA Market Research Survey (conducted at AAPA's annual conference in Boston, Massachusetts in May) were reviewed by the AAPA Research Staff, they projected 223,516,092 prescriptions a year are now written by PAs.

The numbers of PAs in Family Practice has been slowly declining (as a percentage of all PAs) for years. This year's survey information showed more PAs (35%) practiced family medicine than any other specialty. These PAs accounted for approximately 40 percent of the patient visits made to PAs during 2002 and approximately 46 percent of the total number of medications prescribed or recommended by PAs during 2002.

PA students were also represented. Of the new graduates who responded, 67% were female, 85% were white, and mean age was 32 years of age.

They were paid well. The mean salary was $63,168, with a SD of $15,345. But they worked hard for their money (with apologies to Donna Summers). The mean hours of work per week were 45, with 27% of respondents taking call, with a mean of 99 hours per week.

The 2002 surveys had the unusual limitations. Survey forms were mailed to 51,607 people – accounting for 90.6 percent of the 56,952 individuals eligible to practice as PAs as of September 19,2002. Completed surveys were received from 19,745 people, representing 34.7 percent of all individuals eligible to practice as PAs and 38.2 percent of the PAs who were mailed a survey form. Of the 27,158 AAPA members who were mailed a form, 14,663 (54%) responded; of the 24,375 non-members who were mailed a form, 5082 (20.8%) responded.

The bias of this study continues to lean heavily toward the PA who is an AAPA member. Since many employers both require and reimburse for AAPA membership dues, this bias skews the results towards the institutional employed and the better PA employment positions.

The other obvious shortcoming of the annual survey is that the data is not been adjusted to account for non-response. Since only 35% percent of PAs eligible to practice answered the survey, the results may well be meaningless.

Even with these faults, the AAPA survey is the best around, and has been used by employers and PAs for years to negotiate salaries and benefits. Increased participation by the Graduate PA would strengthen the validity of the data.

Source: AAPA News, January 15, 2003, Page 1, and www.aapa.org/research/index.html.