Deprofessionalism is on the rise as there is a decreasing distance in
education keeping medical professionals from patients (Coburn,
2001). I think that deprofessionalization in healthcare does not
eliminate the original profession because of reputation as well as
laws and regulations that are in place. Although times are changing
and people are increasingly okay will seeing the “assistant” there
continues to be many instances in which patients don’t want to see
the PA, they want to see the doctor. I think that has to do with
people’s perception and respect for the training and education of a
doctor who has to put in many more years of education versus that
of a PA who can finish their education in 6 years instead of 8-10.
Similarly, the same concept applies in nursing; why would you want
or allow a CNA to be in charge of your medications when
pharmacology was not part of their educational training. Because
there are differences in the academic programs and what topics are
reviewed these various professionals have different clinical roles and
responsibilities (Senatobia Health Care, 2019). The original
profession generally has the most provisions so it will always exist
meanwhile assistants or aides may help in managing the workload
but they cannot serve as a replacement. In the future I would expect
that due to the shortages of healthcare staff, we will see an increase
in deprofessionalization. Because of the increasing demand and the
growing elderly population any help that the healthcare field can
receive is of benefit even if many of these individuals cannot fully
perform the duties of the original profession. Decreasing the
educational requirements is one of the only ways to incentivize
individuals to enter these professions to help shorten the gap in
healthcare workers.
References
Coburn, D. (2001). Medical Profession, the. International Encyclopedia
of the Social & Behavioral Sciences, 9523–9530.
https://doi.org/10.1016/b0-08-043076-7/03917-6
Senatobia Health Care. (2019, March 15). What is the difference
between a CNA, an RN, and an LPN? SenatobiaHealthCare.com.
Retrieved February 27, 2022, from
https://senatobiahealthcare.com/difference-between-a-cna-rn-lpn/
