APAP Honors Student Writers and Faculty Researchers

Richard Dehn, Research Institute Chair (left to right) poses with the winners of the 2004 APAP Student Writing Competition, Kristine Himmerick, Stacey Sellins,
and Michelle Ronsick.

APAP held its awards ceremony on Tuesday, June 1, during the Semiannual Meeting in Las Vegas to honor the student winners of the 2004 APAP Student Writing Competition. Faculty whose research proposals were selected for funding as part of the NCCPA/APAP Research Grants Program and the AAPA/APAP Research Grants Program were also honored. Richard Dehn, Research Institute chair, moderated.

In addition to covering students’ travel, hotel accommodations, and meeting registration, the Journal of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (JAAPA), also provided the cash prizes. APAP is grateful to JAAPA for continuing the tradition of the writing awards that has been extended to well over a decade of PA students. JAAPA’s generous funding gives students the opportunity to present their writing submissions to an audience of peers, practicing PAs, and family members. Dehn acknowledged APAP’s indebtedness to JAAPA, which for the last four years, has made competition possible.

The students and their winning entries are

• Stacey Sellins, from the Midwestern University PA Program, Downers Grove, Illinois. As first prize winner of the APAP Student Writing Awards, Ms. Sellins is also designated as J. Peter Nyquist award winner. Her topic was ‘No Breath of Fresh Air: Asthma in Inner-City Children.’ Sellins received a prize of $500.

• Kristine Himmerick, MA, from the University of Iowa PA Program, took second place for ‘Enhancing Contraception.’ Himmerick received a prize of $300.

• The third place winner is Michelle Ronsick of the Wichita State University PA Program for her entry, ‘Crohn’s Disease: Through the Bowels and Beyond.’ Ronsick received a prize of $200.
  

The winning students deserve much praise for having been selected from nearly 200 applicants. When asked for comments, first-place winner Sellins said that her submission about asthma resulted from her personal experience with the condition. She acknowledged that the problem was growing, particularly among inner city children, and said that the best outcomes were to be gained from treating asthma early in its course. Himmerick’s goal for her project was to distill an array of information from clinical trials and other published materials into a concise format that would enhance patient care in the exam room. Ronsick spoke of her appreciation for the opportunity to have her work reviewed by future colleagues. Her topic, Crohn’s disease, was one she selected for its great personal interest, and her hope is that she will be able to contribute more in the way of writing in the future.

PA faculty person I. Keir Todd, PA-C, MEd, who chairs the APAP Research Institute subcommittee that manages the student writing awards, facilitated the judging process for his fourth year. The submissions, which were judged for the relevance of the topic to the PA profession, the quality of the review, the thoroughness of the topic's exploration, and the papers overall literary quality, were blinded throughout the process. Initially 10 semi-finalists emerged; from these, the final three winners were selected. Todd drew upon a pool of reviewers who have repeatedly donated their time and talents to the writing awards competition. APAP commends Todd and his team of reviewers for their effective participation in this process.

Faculty Winners of the NCCPA/APAP Research Grants Program and the AAPA/APAP Research Grants Program

Since 2001, the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) and APAP have jointly sponsored the NCCPA/APAP Research Grants Program. The NCCPA/APAP Research Grants Program was established to encourage research on the PA profession, PA education, characteristics of practicing PAs, and innovative evaluation methods to gain data of interest to PA educational programs and relevant to the certification process. Carla Kilgore of the Department of PA Education Program at Saint Louis University was awarded a certificate and a funding check for “An Analysis of Psychosocial Issues in Primary Care PA Practice.” Dehn said that the 2004 grants cycle that culminated in late March 2004 was the NCCPA’s fourth year of supporting faculty engaged in research. Dehn commented that the NCCPA’s role in providing funding support for research related activities within the profession was critical in creating opportunities for faculty and could not be overstated.

For the first time, The American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) and the Research Institute of the Association of Physician Assistant Programs (APAP) jointly sponsored the AAPA/APAP Research Grants Program. The AAPA/APAP Research Grants Program encourages research on the PA profession, particularly in the areas of the profession’s contribution to the health care workforce, characteristics of PA practice, and the collection of data that would contribute to more effective utilization of PAs in the future. Roderick Hooker at the Department of Veterans Affairs of the North Texas Healthcare System was awarded a certificate and a funding check for “What Contributes to Physician Assistant Retention in Rural Communities?” APAP would like to express its’ gratitude to the AAPA for their role in providing funding support for research related activities within the profession.

‘The research we undertake on our profession is an important key to our future. Through the efforts of those who brought their vision to fruition, the generosity of the NCCPA, and now the AAPA, APAP has created the foundation for us to conduct more research. It is important to our profession’s future that we respond to this challenge.’

Richard Dehn, Research Institute Chair