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One of the PA profession's most noted founders reflects on its past 20 years' growth, including his role in initiating the concept and providing direction as the idea took hold. Adapted from an address delivered at the 1985 conference of the North Carolina Academy of Physician Assistants, this article is a candid review of the profession's past and future, exploring various career opportunities now open to PAs.

The development of minicomputers and microprocessors allows the paper and pencil records to be replaced by electronic records. Data from medical practice stored in paper form disappear in the jaws of office files and hospital record rooms. Only a fraction are retrieved for retrospective studies. Records kept in electronic form are immediately available and over time give the doctor a data base from which he can construct a computerized textbook describing his own practice in terms of diagnosis, treatment and outcomes. Data from the practice can even be available as a basis for clinical trials of drugs and procedures. The doctor now has a potential data base for biostatistical and epidemiologic studies relating to his practice on an ongoing basis.