Physician Assistants
(asked on 21st October 2025) - View Source
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the accurate communication of the responsibilities of physician associates to (a) patients, (b) healthcare professionals and (c) the general public.
Individual employers and professionals are responsible for ensuring that patients and other healthcare professionals understand their role.
Professor Leng published her review into the safety of the physician assistants and physician assistants in anaesthesia (still legally known as physician associate and anaesthesia associate roles) and their contributions to multidisciplinary healthcare teams in July. Recommendation 7 sets out the importance of being able to identify roles and as part of taking this recommendation forward, NHS England is working with stakeholders, including NHS Employers, to review existing guidance for employers.
The Department and NHS England will work closely and collaboratively with partners from across the National Health Service, the clinical professions, and their representative bodies to implement the Leng Review recommendations whilst ensuring that patients receive safe, effective, and compassionate care in line with the relevant legal and clinical processes.
Following the publication of the review, NHS England published a ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ document, setting out what the Leng Review recommendations mean for employees and employers, both in the immediate and longer term. This is available at the following link: