Fleming Shani, Kulo Violet, Stakem Andrew, Gordes Karen L, Jun Hyun-Jin, Ludeman Emilie, Cawley James F, Kayingo Gerald
Shani Fleming is associate professor in the Physician Assistant Program and the Physician Assistant Leadership and Learning Academy, Graduate School, University of Maryland Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland.
Violet Kulo is associate professor and program director of the PhD in Health Professions Education, Graduate School, University of Maryland Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland.
J Physician Assist Educ. 2024 Dec 1;35(4):352-360. doi: 10.1097/JPA.0000000000000618. Epub 2024 Oct 16.
The role of accreditation standards in fostering diversity and inclusion in academic programs remains poorly understood. Accreditation is one approach to increasing diversity through Standard A1.11. This study investigates the impact of the Accreditation Review Commission-Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) standards on diversity and inclusion in physician assistant (PA) programs and explores challenges faced by programs in achieving compliance.
This qualitative exploratory study first reviewed diversity standards in accreditation documents among selected health professions; second, data on the frequency of citations from ARC-PA related to diversity were gathered and analyzed; finally, opinions from 23 PA faculty and leaders were solicited through semistructured interviews. Two research team members analyzed the data to identify themes.
Most institutions sponsoring PA programs had preexisting diversity policies before the inception of standard A1.11 of the ARC-PA. Between June 2020 and March 2023, seven programs received 16 citations related to Standard A1.11. Interviews with faculty revealed 4 major themes: (1) the importance of institutional support, (2) early pipeline development of applicants, (3) prioritizing faculty and/or student diversity as key program goals, and (4) local context, with institutional support and pipeline development being most prominent.
The inclusion of Standard A1.11 in the ARC-PA Standards signifies the growing recognition of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in PA education. Institutions can advance DEI in the PA profession by leveraging accreditation-related activities through leadership, partnerships, and accountability measures consistent with the institution's mission and applicable laws. Institutional support emerged as an important factor in compliance with diversity-related accreditation standards.
认证标准在促进学术项目中的多样性和包容性方面所起的作用仍未得到充分理解。认证是通过标准A1.11增加多样性的一种方式。本研究调查了医师助理教育认证评审委员会（ARC-PA）标准对医师助理（PA）项目中多样性和包容性的影响，并探讨了项目在实现合规方面面临的挑战。
这项定性探索性研究首先回顾了选定卫生专业认证文件中的多样性标准；其次，收集并分析了与ARC-PA相关的多样性引用频率数据；最后，通过半结构化访谈征求了23名PA教员和负责人的意见。两名研究团队成员对数据进行分析以确定主题。
大多数主办PA项目的机构在ARC-PA的标准A1.11出台之前就已经有了多样性政策。在2020年6月至2023年3月期间，有七个项目收到了与标准A1.11相关的16次引用。对教员的访谈揭示了4个主要主题：（1）机构支持的重要性，（2）申请人的早期渠道开发，（3）将教员和/或学生的多样性作为关键项目目标的优先事项，以及（4）当地情况，其中机构支持和渠道开发最为突出。
ARC-PA标准中纳入标准A1.11标志着PA教育中对多样性、公平性和包容性（DEI）的认识日益提高。机构可以通过与机构使命和适用法律相一致的领导、伙伴关系和问责措施，利用与认证相关的活动来推进PA职业中的DEI。机构支持成为符合与多样性相关的认证标准的一个重要因素。
