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TABLE 219. ESTIMATED PERCENT DISTRIBUTION OF PRACTICING PHYSICIAN ASSISTANTS BY SPECIALTY SELECTED YEARS: 1984-2000 1/

Specialty
1984
1989
1990
1991
1992
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Primary care 55.8 49.3 45.0 43.6 42.8 50.8 49.9 51.0 50.0 47.9
Family medicine 2/ 42.5 37.9 33.0 31.3 31.4 39.8 38.4 39.6 38.0 36.5
General internal medicine 9.2 7.8 9.0 9.9 8.9 8.3 8.9 8.5 9.2 8.8
Pediatrics 4.1 3.6 3.0 2.4 2.5 2.7 2.7 2.9 2.8 2.6
Non primary care 44.2 50.7 55.0 56.4 57.2 49.2 50.1 49.0 50.0 52.1
Obstetrics/gynecology 3.1 4.6 4.0 3.4 3.3 3.0 2.7 2.7 2.4 2.7
Surgical subspecialties 3/ 9.0 7.5 9.0 9.0 9.8 8.8 15.7 16.3 16.8 17.4
General surgery 9.2 7.9 8.0 9.2 8.0 3.1 3.1 2.8 2.8 2.7
Internal med subspecialties 4.8 3.8 6.0 5.9 7.1 5.7 6.2 6.4 6.9 8.1
Pediatric Subspecialties 0.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.5 1.3 1.4 1.5
Emergency medicine 6.4 6.2 7.0 7.9 8.0 10.3 9.8 9.5 9.9 9.7
Orthopedics 4.1 5.6 6.0 7.1 7.6 6.9
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Occupational medicine 4.1 3.8 5.0 4.0 3.9 3.1 3.3 3.4 3.4 3.5
Other specialties 4/ 3.5 10.3 8.0 8.9 8.3 6.9 7.9 6.6 6.4 6.5

1/ Practicing Physician Assistants are estimated at 85% of total graduates.
2/ Includes General medicine.
3/ Beginning in 1997 includes Orthopedics
4/ Includes Correctional medicine, Neurology, Geriatric medicine, Psychiatry, and Industrial medicine.

SOURCE: American Academy of Physician Assistants. (www.aapa.org/research/clinprac2002.html)