A longitudinal investigation of physician's assistants' perceptions as members of a health care team: a preliminary study.

The perceptions of a cohort of 124 Physician's Assistants (PA) were assessed by responses to questionnaires employing the semantic differential. Profiles at beginning and end of training and as a health worker on the job suggest that other members of the health team are viewed favorably and that PAs' self perceptions may change over time to become more like their perception of nurses and less like their perception of physicians.