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The PAHx Collection

The Society’s Archive, Library and Museum Collection

We chronicle the development of various professional organizations necessary to promote the education, certification, deployment and effective use of physician assistants throughout the US.
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The Society’s Historical Collections

Included in our collection are papers of key leaders who helped establish and lead these organizations through demanding but rewarding times, and pioneering physician assistants who proved the inherent value of using non-physician personnel to augment the provision of health care services. The Society’s historical collections provide primary source material valuable to educators, students, policy-makers and researchers who want to understand the legal, social, economic and professional issues that helped shaped the PA profession during its formative years and allowed it to become an integral part of the American Health Care System. As the collection grows it will trace the expansion of the physician assistant movement nationally and internationally.

The Archive

The Archive is a valuable repository of primary source material that provides a historical context for accurately describing events that occurred during various phases of our development as a profession. It contains Organizational Records and Personal Manuscripts preserved according to national archival standards and best practices. These materials include documents, correspondence, clippings, reprints, photographs, and video. In addition the archives contain a digital collection of oral histories, photographs and videos either donated to or produced by the Society. The Archives currently contain 5 Organizational Records Collections, 20 Personal Manuscript Collections, 83 recorded interviews, 200 videos, and 2500 images.

The Library

The Library is a valuable repository of publications that encourage historical critical thinking necessary to determine if a statement, finding or conclusion is valid, partially valid or not valid at all. It contains a variety of printed materials including journals, books, dissertations, reports, newsletters and copies of articles. It also includes first editions, signed copies and other rare books.  The Library consists of 362 books, 835 articles, 32 dissertations, 78 serials, 245 reports, 36 manuscripts and 53 journals consisting of series of journals of major PA organizations.

The Museum

The Museum is a valuable repository of objects that provides a broad visual understanding of our professional heritage, legacy and culture. It holds a wide variety of objects that embody the PA Profession’s development and evolution including artwork, uniforms, lapel pins, student PA program patches, medical instruments, awards, certificates, and artifacts. The Museum Collection contains over 200 donated items from various individuals and over 70 items from the Eugene A. Stead, Jr. estate.