3 Reason to Attend the 2019 AAPA Conference and 3 Reason Not to Attend
The 2019 AAPA conference is happening in Denver, Colorado and registration is now open. There are a lot of reasons that you might want to attend, or not. If you’re on the fence here are three reasons to go and three reason not to go.
3 Reasons to Attend the 2019 AAPA Conference
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Network with Other PAs
I’m not sure there is another event out there where you will see more PAs at one time. Often, in practice being a PA can be lonely. Many PAs are trailblazers and are the only PA in their practice. At the AAPA conference there is plenty of opportunity to meet others who have been in your position.
It’s a great opportunity to network and compare the challenges you might be going through with other PAs. If you have questions on how your practice uses PAs, does billing for PAs, sets up of contracts for PAs, etc. this will be the place to find answers.
I’ve always left the conference excited about the PA career.
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Continuing Medical Education (cme)
If you’re in need of cme to keep up with your certification or license this is a great place to go. With five days of opportunities to attend lectures you can get most of your category I cme completed.
A benefit to going to the AAPA conference is that there are different tracks you can focus. If you have a specific interest you can focus on those areas. This allows you to not waste time and energy learning about things that might not be relevant to your current job.
The conferences put on by the state organizations are typically geared toward primary care. If you’re working in a specialty many of the meetings may not be as helpful for you. It’s still great to support your state PA organizations, but the annual conference of your the state organization might not be the best learning opportunity for you.
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Time Away from Work
Taking a week off in May to go to Denver is not like a trip to Las Vegas, but a company paid trip is always a bonus. Many PAs get paid days off for cme, as well as an allowance for cme expenses. A conference is a fun way to use these days off.
There are other conferences out there that you can use your time and money on, but if you’re looking for a good conference for PAs then you might want to consider this one.
If your company doesn’t cover the costs of cme, I’d consider bringing this up in negotiations. It’s a necessary expense to stay certified and in some states you need cme to keep your license. Many employers cover this expense, so why doesn’t yours?
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3 Reasons not to Attend the 2019 AAPA Conference
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Missed Early Registration
The early registration period already ended. If you register now you’ll be paying $50 more than you could have.
It still might be worth it for you to go; when you consider the cost of the conference is over $700 (plus flight and hotel) an extra $50 is chump change. If you’re still debating on going to the conference sign up now, before there is another price increase.
If you don’t have a cme allowance and don’t live anywhere near Denver, than going to a conference closer to where you live is probably more affordable; or if you’re going to spend all the money to go somewhere it might be fun to go to a more desirable location.
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You Live in Denver
If you haven’t heard, the AAPA is now charging an additional $200 for conference registration if you don’t stay in “conference housing”. If you live in the Denver area and could easily commute to the conference from home, you’ll be penalized for not staying in the conference housing.
I don’t live near Denver and was planning on staying in the conference housing anyways, so it didn’t really change much for me. If I had to pay an additional $200, that might push me over the edge in deciding not to attend the conference.
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Rebel Against AAPA
Are you tired of the “man” making the rules? It’s time to Rebel against the “man”. There are plenty of PA’s who don’t see the benefits in maintaining their AAPA membership. On a day to day basis you don’t see what the AAPA is doing for the PA profession, so it’s difficult to invest in something that does not give you any returns.
The AAPA does advocated for the profession and it’s hard to say where the profession would be without the AAPA, but if you really feel like it’s not providing you the benefits that would like, than skipping the AAPA conference and not supporting the organization is an option.
There’s still time to register for the conference. If you have not done so yet, I’d advise doing it before the next price hike. It’s already gone up once since registration opened, so don’t miss out on less expensive registration fees.
Are you planning on going to the 2019 AAPA conference? Or are you taking a pass? What’s you favorite PA conference to attend? Please comment below the original post, sign up to receive future posts by email and share with your friends!
Hi All:
Another reason to attend is to see your leadership in action. Maybe become inspired to enter leadership in some way? Talk to us. Let us know your concerns. Talk to the delegates from your state.
If you are not an AAPA and state member, we need you and you need to be. Why? Because the profession is at the beginning of great change and it HAS TO begin to adjust rules and regulations that were written in the mid-1970s. These need to reflect healthcare not of 50 years ago, but of the 21st century. We are looking at OTP and title change. What’s next is up to you. But if we lose legislative power over the next ten years instead of gaining it and decreasing our barriers, the profession ald each and every one of us will feel it.
Come join us.
My personal opinion only.
Dave Mittman, PA, DFAAPA
great point!