The Faculty of Physician Associates (FPA) at the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is the professional membership body for physician associates (PAs) in the United Kingdom. Established in 2015, it is responsible for setting PA standards, running the accreditation examinations, management of the Physician Associate Managed Voluntary Register (PAMVR) and is a faculty of the RCP.
Its predecessor organisation was the UK Association of Physician Assistants (UKAPA) which was created in 2005. The UKAPA voted to change the name of their profession to physician associates in 2013.
It was recently announced that the FPA would become independent of the RCP within a year, after PA members voted in favour of the proposal.
Dr Sarah Clarke, RCP president has now clarified the financial arrangment between the two organisations.
Dr Clarke said: ‘The RCP is not, and has never been, financially dependent on income from the FPA.’
The RCP recieves income from FPA exams and membership fees from physician associates. The RCP have confirmed this is around 4% of the total annual income of the RCP, which is predominantly used to cover ‘FPA staffing, costs and overheads’.
Dr Clarke confirmed that RCP does not hold any contracts for the delivery of the Physician Associate National Exam or for hosting the FPA.
Dr Clarke said: ‘With regulation now in sight, the RCP and FPA have begun to develop a timeline for an independent future home for PAs in 2025. As a result, the RCP financial strategy assumes that the FPA will be independent in the future.’