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What would it be like to work as a cardiothoracic PA?

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Welcome to the first “day in the life of” series. This is probably my favorite type of podcast episode I have planned and want to offer you as listeners of the PA start a podcast.

When I was a student, I always wanted to know what my life would be like working in different specialties. The goal of this series is to shed some light on what an actual position in these specialties might entail.

Today we are starting with my friend and coworker Eric Sprague, PA– C, who is a cardiothoracic PA. We have worked together for five years, he has been a PA for 6 years at the time of this recording. He started out in orthopedics right out of school until I approached him to work in cardiac surgery.

He performs all types of adult cardiothoracic surgery, endoscopically harvests saphenous veins for conduit use, and provides inpatient and outpatient care to pre- and postop patients.

He has some great insight in today’s podcast including:

• Being careful of taking the first job you’re offered
• Shadowing PAs before going to PA school so you’d understand what a PA does and where we fit in the healthcare model
• A typical day in cardiac surgery
• His favorite and least favorite aspects of the job
• A once-in-a-lifetime patient story that he probably never anticipated encountering, but it makes for an excellent story now.

Enjoy this episode—and potentially a future in cardiothoracic surgery?

LINKS:

Association of PAs in Cardiovascular Surgery (APACVS)

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