Have time to know your patients, not just their diagnosis

BLAZING A TRAIL
Duke University developed the nation’s first physician assistant program, accepting its first class of PA students in 1965, and Kettering College of Medical Arts was not far behind.  In the fall of 1973, through the inspiration and efforts of three men – Winston Beaven, PhD, Kettering College president; A.B. Black, MD, chief of staff at Kettering Medical Center; and Clinton Trott, MD, a prominent area family physician, - the first PA class began at Kettering College.

THE CLINTON TROTT SOCIETY
Dr. Trott served as program director and medical director until his retirement in 1984. His presence is still felt in the program, as Kettering College’s chapter of the Student Academy of the American Academy of Physician Assistants bears his name – the Clinton Trott Society. Outstanding Kettering College PA graduates with a strong interest in family medicine both at the time of admission and upon graduation are given the Clinton Trott Family Medicine Recognition.

PA PROGRAM GRANTED ACCREDITATION
Kettering College’s PA program was granted accreditation upon its first application in 1975, and it has maintained active accreditation since then. In January of 2000, the program was granted a seven-year accreditation status, a distinction only approximately 10 percent of PA programs receive.

ACHIEVING NEW HEIGHTS
As of May 2006, more than 750 PAs had completed their education at Kettering College. The majority of graduates received an Associate of Science degree; however, this degree changed in 2000, with post-graduate certificates awarded to 20 graduates. In 2001, Kettering College graduated its first class of baccalaureate-prepared PAs. The summer of 2006 was a hallmark for the PA program at Kettering College, as it admitted its first class of students for the Master’s of Physician Assistant Studies.