Joint Effort PAs
We're two orthopedic surgery physician assistants discussing PA school, life as a PA, cases and topics related to orthopedics, and much more!
Episodes
This week on Joint Effort PAs, Hannah and Beth are breaking down the knee exam with practical tips, clinical pearls, and a few tricks to help you work smarter, not harder. From ligament testing and meniscal maneuvers to recognizing subtle findings and avoiding common pitfalls, we're talking about how to make your exam more efficient, accurate, and meaningful.
Whether you're a new PA finding your footing or a seasoned...
Having health insurance doesn't always mean having equal access to healthcare. This week, Hannah and Beth dive into the disparities in orthopedic care, exploring how insurance barriers can impact everything from surgical timeliness to postoperative rehabilitation. Are we truly providing the same standard of care to every patient, or does their insurance determine their path to recovery? When patients struggle to fol...
This week, we’re joined by our friend and fellow PA, Kristina, to talk about building a career that doesn’t fit neatly into one box. From working full-time in psychiatry and picking up PRN shifts in orthopedic urgent care to navigating side hustles and ultimately launching her own direct-access practice, Kristina has created a career on her own terms.
We talk about balancing multiple roles, finding opport...
This week, we’re breaking down the proposed changes surrounding Modifier 25 and what they could mean for PAs, physicians, and practices that routinely provide an E/M service and a procedure on the same day. We talk about what Modifier 25 actually means, why insurers are targeting it, how the proposed reimbursement cuts could affect the way we practice, and the bigger problem with continually asking healthcare ...
What makes someone a “real” PA? 👀 After a recent story about someone allegedly creating a fake PA-student social media presence caught our attention, we started thinking about a much more uncomfortable question: what happens when someone has the very real degree and very real credentials—but maybe didn’t exactly master everything it took to get there?
In this episode, we talk about the spectr...
Are you a great problem solver… or have you accidentally trained everyone around you to let you solve everything?
This week, we’re talking about the fine line between being helpful and becoming the person who catches every dropped ball. When you’re competent, proactive, and maybe just a little controlling, it’s easy to step in, fix the problem, and keep things moving. But eventually, being ev...
In this episode of Joint Effort PAs, we're having The Surgical Discussion: how we talk with patients about whether surgery is—or isn't—the right next step. We break down how we explain indications, risks vs. benefits, expected outcomes, recovery, and what happens when things don't go according to plan.
We also talk about complications, managing expectations, when a second opinion makes sense, and why reco...
We’re back for Part 2 of “Am I in the Right Specialty?” — because apparently choosing a career based on vibes, caffeine tolerance, and how personally offended you get by a clinic running 45 minutes behind is completely reasonable.
This week, we finish our throwback magazine-style specialty quiz and find out where your PA personality really belongs. More questions, more questionable logic, and ...
Ever wonder if you picked the right corner of medicine—or if you’ve just been in too deep for too long? Is your soul longing for an unmatched specialty?
We think there should be a quiz a la pre teen magazine that matches you to your perfect fit
Play along and see if your current specialty is actually your perfect match… or if it’s time to reconsider everything.
We broke this episode into ...
One year. Fifty-plus episodes. Countless laughs, hot takes, clinical pearls, and a community we never imagined we'd build.
In this special anniversary episode, we're taking a step back to celebrate one year of Joint Effort PAs. We reflect on why we started the podcast, what we've learned along the way, some of our favorite moments, and how the show has evolved over the past year. From recording our very first episode...
From evaluating mysterious rashes at family cookouts to examining swollen fingers at weddings, removing fishhooks on vacation, or answering texts that begin with "I know you're off, but...", the curbside consult is practically a rite of passage in medicine.
In this episode, we're sharing our funniest, most awkward, and most memorable off-the-clock consults—including the times we've found ourselves giving medica...
Steroid injections are one of the most common procedures in orthopedic practice—but they're also surrounded by myths, misconceptions, and a lot of patient questions.
In this episode, we're breaking down all of it. We tackle the questions patients ask every day, from "Will this hurt?" and "How long will it last?" to "How many injections can I get?" and "Will it damage my cartilage?"
Along the way, we discuss:
- ...
Every week as orthopedic PAs, we're faced with decisions that don't have a perfect answer. Some are serious, some are fun, all are things we've encountered.
From ethical dilemmas and clinic management challenges to difficult patient interactions, career decisions, orthopedic hot takes, and some of our biggest pet peeves, nothing is off the table.
There isn't always one "correct" answer—but there is always someth...
We get it, the elbow can be intimidating.
Lateral pain isn't always tennis elbow. Medial pain isn't always golfer's elbow. Numb fingers, snapping tendons, unstable ligaments, arthritis, stiffness, loose bodies, nerve compression—the differential diagnosis gets surprisingly long, surprisingly fast.
In this episode, Hannah and Beth break down one of orthopedics' most overlooked joints. We walk through our approach...
In this episode, we're diving into the "scarlet letters" that can follow healthcare professionals. A youthful social media post. A misdemeanor from years ago. A board investigation. A license suspension that's since been reinstated. A termination. A messy divorce that's public. A career detour you wish you could erase.
How much should our past matter?
We explore the difficult balance between protecting patients and al...
Why does it sometimes feel like nobody listens when you're calm—but suddenly everyone pays attention once you're angry, overwhelmed, or at your breaking point?
For many women in medicine, authority can feel like an impossible balancing act. Be too accommodating and your concerns get overlooked. Speak up too forcefully and you're labeled "difficult." Somewhere along the way, many of us start wondering:
- Why do...
In this special episode, we're taking a trip to the room where it happens and exploring what one Broadway phenomenon can teach us about life in medicine. From My Shot and early-career ambition to Wait For It and learning that not every opportunity needs to be chased, we break down the themes from Hamilton that hit a little differently when you're an orthopedic PA.
We talk about burnout and the temptation to be Non-St...
Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome: the diagnosis everyone has heard of, but nobody can seem to explain in less than 30 seconds.
This week, we're tackling one of the most frustrating conditions in orthopedics. Why does PFPS seem to affect everyone from runners to weekend warriors? Why do patients expect a quick fix when the answer is usually "it depends"? And why is it so difficult to explain that the pain is at the knee, ...
Welcome back to Joint Effort PAs, where this week we ask the important question
Is the grass actually greener somewhere else... or are we just looking at it from a distance and ignoring the weeds?
In this episode, we're serving up some unfiltered Wednesday musings after one of those weeks.
We talk about the "grass is greener" phenomenon. From clinic frustrations and workflow headaches to the mental gymnastics of compar...
Are you the golden retriever PA? The procedure goblin? The apex predator? Or the one one minor inconvenience away from overload? 👀
This week we’re spinning the wheel of PA archetypes and calling out every ortho personality type we’ve worked with (and maybe which ones we are). From the over-explainers and boundary kings/queens to the “Dr. PA” vs “MA PA” dichotomy… no one is ...
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