Do you know that only 3.6% of the currently practicing Physician Associates/Assistants (PAs as they’re commonly called) are black? In this episode, our hosts Nia Phillips PA-C talks about a wide range of medical topics covering pediatrics and the role of pediatricians and black PA's caring for children. 

Exploring the journey of how Nia got into the specialty of pediatrics, this episode gradually dives deep and answers questions about the PA profession, the differences between being a pediatrician and a PA, what does the work of these professionals look like day in and day out. The conversation further continues and touches upon the topics of educating a parents or caretakers on what are the things that can and should be done to safeguard the health of their children and why this is more of a collaborative effort between the clinicians and parents/caretakers. Nia also answers some of the pressing medical questions that parents often have when trying to navigate their pediatricians office, emergency department and urgent care office when faced with a sick or injured child.

Later in the episode, the hosts also discuss the types of disorders that children of color often face the most, what are the factors that one should consider before choosing a pediatrician office, and some of the red flags that are to be avoided while doing so.

If you are a parent or the caretaker of a child or expecting to become one soon, you don’t want to miss listening to this episode!

Timestamps:

• 02:58 Black history fact.
• 06:19 Nia's Journey and introduction.
• 07:35 How Nia got into pediatrics
• 12:01 What would encourage more black students to take up pediatrics/get a PA degree?
• 16:01 What are the differences/similarities between working as a pediatrician or a PA in rural versus urban settings?
• 21:01 What is a physician assistant(PA)?
• 27:40 What advice do you find yourself giving to parents often?
• 31:45 What necessitates going to the office vs urgent care vs ER?
• 38:05 Pediatric concerns that are impacting children of color or interventions that play out differently in communities of color?
• 46:44 Should parents or caretakers interview pediatricians? How soon is too soon?
• 50:28 Red flags while interviewing pediatricians.
• 53:36 Aspects of being a pediatrician/PA that most people don’t know about?
• 56:30 Lightning round getting to know the host Nia