Complete Story
11/27/2023
“The Way It Was”: Reflections from Ohio PA Licensee #2, Mike Bolinger, PA-C
The PA profession has existed for more than 50 years, but at its inception, practitioners struggled to gain acceptance in health care settings and access to provide medical care to patients. Although the field continues to experience barriers to practice, PAs have come a long way in gaining well-deserved respect and being entrusted with important responsibilities.
OAPA member Cameron Powell, MPAS, PA-C, Chair of the Health Science Division and Program Director for PA Studies at Ohio Dominican University recently caught up with his mentor and inspiration for joining the PA profession, Milton (Mike) Bolinger, PA-C. Now retired, Mike led a long and successful career as a PA in Ohio for more than 30 years, primarily in cardiothoracic surgery and emergency medicine.
As the holder of PA license #2 in Ohio, issued in January 1977, Mike shares his reflections on the state of the profession when he began his career and how it evolved over time in his story "The Way It Was". We hope that by reading about where PAs started, OAPA members can appreciate how far the PA profession has come in Ohio, even if we know we still have a ways to go.
Our thanks to Mike for his perspective, and to Cameron for bringing Mike's story to our attention. We encourage all OAPA members to let us know if they have a story to tell, or wish to nominate a colleague who they admire for a member spotlight using this form.
The Way It Was, by Mike Bolinger, PA-C
Read more from Mike's early years as a PA:
