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Physician associates in primary care, by region - 31 May 2024

Full-time equivalent (FTE) physician associates working in general practices and primary care networks in England and each NHS England region on 31 May 2024
Date published:
12 July 2024

Request received

We were asked for:

  1. The total number of physician associates employed in the NHS in England (both in terms of headcount and Full Time Equivalent)
  2. A breakdown of the number of PAs employed as per 1) by NHS region
  3. A breakdown of the number of PAs employed as per 1) by settings: i) primary, ii) community and iii) secondary care 
  4. A breakdown of the number of PAs employed as per 1) by specialty

Our response

In response we explained that it is not possible to provide aggregated headcounts across multiple sectors due to the difficulty in identifying individuals holding roles in multiple sectors, which could result in double-counting some staff. Therefore, only FTE totals could be provided.

To address the primary care aspect of the request, we provided the total FTE for physician associates working in general practices and primary care networks in England and each NHS England region as of 31 May 2024, the most recent data available. These figures are published as part of the Primary Care Workforce Quarterly Update, but only for March, June, September, and December of each year.

Information on specialty is not collected for the primary care workforce.

Download the data

Last edited: 12 July 2024 8:58 am