Nurse Practitioners, Physician Assistants, or Nurse Midwifes: what are the ups and downs of your careers?

I'm in the process of getting my BSN and am trying to chose which of the three areas to master in.

While it's true that Physician Assistant's perform nearly all of the same function that Nurse Practitioners can perform, the key difference between them was stated by the PA that answered in this thread-- PA's work under the supervision of a Physician, but Nurse Practitioners practice independantly and do NOT work under anyone's supervision.

Nurse Practitioners are able to open clinical practices of their own, can specialize in a diverse variety of practice areas, and can work in collaboration with other providers such as physicians, but Physician Assistants can NOT practice on their own, can NOT open their own practice groups, and always work under a doctor's supervision. Nurse Practitioners are autonomous healthcare providers - Physician Assistants are not.

Here's an article that better describes what a Nurse Practitioner is and what a Physician Assistant is:
http://myonlinenursingdegree.com/nurse-p...

Best wishes

First of all, I speak from experience because I am a Physician Assistant and have a Master Physician Assistant Degree.

Nurse Practitioners, Physician Assistants, and Nurse Midwifes perform a variety of Physician duties but PA's are as close to becoming a doctor as you can get. I know this because my PA clinical experience at the Medical Center was very similar and often the same as the MD clinicals there.

PA's are highly qualified health professionals who have been prepared, through a demanding academic and clinical curriculum, to PRACTICE MEDICINE as an agent of a physician. PA's gather and evaluate medical data and participate in the process of clinical decision-making, diagnosis and therapeutic management. They take medical histories, perform physical examinations, order and interpret laboratory and diagnostic tests and develop treatment plans. Typically they perform surgical procedures and provide diagnostic and therapeutic patient care in virtually all types of clinical settings. In specialty settings a PA may assist in complex surgical or diagnostic procedures, participate in patient rounds and provide perioperative care, and physician assistants have the authority to write prescriptions.

If you do some research you'll find that a Nurse Practitioner does not have the same clinical or medical practice training that a PA receives.

As for a Nurse Midwife, well... My wife and I had a Nurse Midwife deliver our baby and she had doctor's rights at the hospital we went to. She was in complete control of the delivery room so I assume that a midwife is a pretty elite nursing classification.

Basically, you have to evaluate each career path and decide which is best for you.