What does a Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read

A Physician Assistant supports the doctors work and actively facilitates patients recovery. An Internal Medicine uses nonsurgical approaches to treat medical conditions that affect adults.

On This Page

Physician assistant, internal medicine responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real physician assistant, internal medicine resumes:

  • Manage continuity of care for complex general internal patients with limit resources-diabetes, hypertension, psychiatric, and homeless.
  • Assess and treat acute/chronic medical problems and provide education for prevention and/or progression of diagnosis to patients and families.
  • x-ray review, medication review & administration, EKG, telephone triage
  • Perform wellness exams from adolescent through geriatric patients and educate patients on lifestyle modifications and chronic diseases as appropriate.
  • Work in an outpatient orthopedic clinic with emphasis on physical medicine, rehabilitation of both chronic and acute orthopedic conditions.
  • Monitor immunization, ACLS, BLS and other documents relate to the clinical students and ensure they are up to date.
  • Assess and diagnose complications relate to cancer and chemotherapy.

Physician assistant, internal medicine skills and personality traits

We calculated that 36% of Physician Assistants, Internal Medicine are proficient in Patients, Primary Care, and Diagnosis. They’re also known for soft skills such as Emotional stability, Problem-solving skills, and Communication skills.

We break down the percentage of Physician Assistants, Internal Medicine that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Patients, 36%

    Assessed and treated acute/chronic medical problems and provided education for prevention and/or progression of diagnosis to patients and families.

  • Primary Care, 7%

    Prepare, develop, and initiate treatment plans in consultation with primary care physician.

  • Diagnosis, 5%

    Utilize evidence based medicine to establish a differential diagnosis and treatment plan.

  • Acute Care, 3%

    Experienced in both inpatient and outpatient settings with emphasis on hospital acute care.

  • Physical Exams, 3%

    Provide health care maintenance responsibilities such as immunizations, annual physical exams.

  • Rehabilitation, 3%

    Skilled nursing and rehabilitation center in suburban Detroit, MI.

Most physician assistants, internal medicine use their skills in "patients," "primary care," and "diagnosis" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential physician assistant, internal medicine responsibilities here:

Emotional stability. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a physician assistant, internal medicine to have is emotional stability. Their role and responsibilities require that "physician assistants, particularly those working in surgery or emergency medicine, should work well under pressure." Physician assistants, internal medicine often use emotional stability in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "performed daily call backs to patients regarding positive urine and sti cultures, offering both medical and emotional support. "

Problem-solving skills. Many physician assistant, internal medicine duties rely on problem-solving skills. "physician assistants need to evaluate patients’ symptoms and administer the appropriate treatments," so a physician assistant, internal medicine will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways physician assistant, internal medicine responsibilities rely on problem-solving skills: "perform physical examination and prescribe treatment geared at resolution of acute, common health conditions. "

Communication skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of physician assistants, internal medicine is communication skills. This skill is critical to many everyday physician assistant, internal medicine duties, as "physician assistants must explain complex medical issues in a way that patients can understand." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "noted by colleagues for effective communication skills and by local pcps for outstanding discharge summaries and patient education. "

Compassion. For certain physician assistant, internal medicine responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "compassion." The day-to-day duties of a physician assistant, internal medicine rely on this skill, as "physician assistants deal with patients who are sick or injured and who may be in extreme pain or distress." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what physician assistants, internal medicine do: "conducted thorough assessments, ordered appropriate tests, and treated patients with compassion. "

Detail oriented. Another common skill required for physician assistant, internal medicine responsibilities is "detail oriented." This skill comes up in the duties of physician assistants, internal medicine all the time, as "physician assistants should be observant and have a strong ability to focus when evaluating and treating patients." An excerpt from a real physician assistant, internal medicine resume shows how this skill is central to what a physician assistant, internal medicine does: "obtained medical histories, performed problem oriented physical exams, ordered and performed diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. "

Interpersonal skills. While "interpersonal skills" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to physician assistant, internal medicine responsibilities. Much of what a physician assistant, internal medicine does relies on this skill, seeing as "physician assistants must work well as part of a team of other healthcare professionals to ensure proper patient care." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of physician assistants, internal medicine: "utilized strong interpersonal skills to interact well with physicians, staff and patients. "

See the full list of physician assistant, internal medicine skills

Choose from 10+ customizable physician assistant, internal medicine resume templates

Build a professional physician assistant, internal medicine resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your physician assistant, internal medicine resume.
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume
Physician Assistant, Internal Medicine Resume

Compare different physician assistants, internal medicine

Physician assistant, internal medicine vs. Optometrist

A licensed optometrist is primarily responsible for the vision and eye care of clients, treating different conditions such as astigmatism, nearsightedness, and farsightedness. Their duties mostly revolve around performing eye and vision tests, diagnosing issues, providing consultations, prescribing corrective glasses and lenses, and educating clients on proper eye care methods. Furthermore, an optometrist must maintain records of all cases and treatment plans, and supervise support staff should they choose to work at a private clinic or a similar setting.

If we compare the average physician assistant, internal medicine annual salary with that of an optometrist, we find that optometrists typically earn a $61,918 higher salary than physician assistants, internal medicine make annually.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both physician assistant, internal medicine and optometrist positions are skilled in patients, diagnosis, and rehabilitation.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, physician assistant, internal medicine responsibilities require skills like "primary care," "bls," "acute care," and "physical exams." Meanwhile a typical optometrist has skills in areas such as "patient care," "customer service," "pre," and "visual acuity." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Optometrists tend to make the most money working in the health care industry, where they earn an average salary of $163,075. In contrast, physician assistants, internal medicine make the biggest average salary, $126,948, in the health care industry.The education levels that optometrists earn slightly differ from physician assistants, internal medicine. In particular, optometrists are 30.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a physician assistant, internal medicine. Additionally, they're 18.9% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Physician assistant, internal medicine vs. Speech pathologist

The job of speech pathologists is to diagnose, treat, and prevent speech, social communication, language, swallowing, and cognitive-communication disorders in both children and adults. They are responsible for providing aural rehabilitation for people with hearing impairment and hearing loss, and alternative and augmentative systems for people with severe language comprehension disorders such as progressive neurological disorders and the autism spectrum. Speech pathologists may also work with individuals without language, swallowing, or speech disorders, but are eager to know how to communicate more effectively.

A career as a speech pathologist brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a physician assistant, internal medicine. In fact, speech pathologists salary is $63,096 lower than the salary of physician assistants, internal medicine per year.While the salary may differ for these jobs, they share a few skills needed to perform their duties. Based on resume data, both physician assistants, internal medicine and speech pathologists have skills such as "patients," "diagnosis," and "acute care. "

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, physician assistant, internal medicine responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "primary care," "bls," "physical exams," and "internal medicine practice." Meanwhile, a speech pathologist has duties that require skills in areas such as "language," "speech," "patient care," and "home health." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Speech pathologists earn a lower average salary than physician assistants, internal medicine. But speech pathologists earn the highest pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $74,516. Additionally, physician assistants, internal medicine earn the highest salaries in the health care with average pay of $126,948 annually.speech pathologists earn higher levels of education than physician assistants, internal medicine in general. They're 10.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 18.9% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Physician assistant, internal medicine vs. Family nurse practitioner

A family nurse practitioner is a registered nurse with advanced practice in family-focused care. Nurse practitioners can provide patient care to both children and adults. They have a higher degree in training than registered nurses; thus, they are qualified to diagnose and provide treatment to complex body conditions. Their duties include developing treatment plans, performing diagnostic tests, screening evaluations, and prescribing medications. Also, they educate and guide patients on disease prevention and healthy lifestyle habits. Their advanced education and training allowed them to practice as a clinic and hospital administrators as well as policy-makers. Family nurse practitioners have to get a bachelor's degree in nursing, then take and passed NCLEX-RN to become a registered nurse then proceed to take a Master's degree to get a job as a family nurse practitioner.

An average family nurse practitioner eans a lower salary compared to the average salary of physician assistants, internal medicine. The difference in salaries amounts to family nurse practitioners earning a $25,195 lower average salary than physician assistants, internal medicine.physician assistants, internal medicine and family nurse practitioners both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "patients," "primary care," and "diagnosis," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from physician assistant, internal medicine resumes include skills like "bls," "rehabilitation," "internal medicine practice," and "pa-c," whereas a family nurse practitioner is more likely to list skills in "emr," "fnp," "home health," and "primary health care. "

Family nurse practitioners make a very good living in the health care industry with an average annual salary of $105,732. On the other hand, physician assistants, internal medicine are paid the highest salary in the health care industry, with average annual pay of $126,948.When it comes to education, family nurse practitioners tend to earn higher degree levels compared to physician assistants, internal medicine. In fact, they're 10.8% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 5.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Physician assistant, internal medicine vs. Adult nurse practitioner

Adult nurse practitioners average a lower salary than the annual salary of physician assistants, internal medicine. The difference is about $24,289 per year.While their salaries may vary, physician assistants, internal medicine and adult nurse practitioners both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "patients," "primary care," and "diagnosis. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between physician assistants, internal medicine and adult nurse practitioners, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a physician assistant, internal medicine might have more use for skills like "bls," "rehabilitation," "internal medicine practice," and "pa-c." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of adult nurse practitioners require skills like "internal medicine," "health history," "home health," and "medical history. "

In general, adult nurse practitioners earn the most working in the government industry, with an average salary of $112,683. The highest-paying industry for a physician assistant, internal medicine is the health care industry.adult nurse practitioners reach higher levels of education compared to physician assistants, internal medicine, in general. The difference is that they're 11.6% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 5.2% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of physician assistant, internal medicine

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs