Zeckhauser, Richard, and Michael Eliastam, M.D. 1974. "The Productivity Potential of the Physician Assistant." Journal of Human Resources 9(1):95-116.

The physician assistant is a title applied to individuals who assume at least a portion of physicians' traditional duties. This paper develops a production function methodology to estimate the potential contribution of physician assistants in the delivery of medical care. This methodology is applied to a paradigm delivery mode, an urban health center. Following upon a discussion of the possibilities for delegation and the efficient assignment of medical tasks to physician assistants, a numerical production function is estimated for physicians and physician assistants working together. When taking on his most productive assignments, it is found, a physician assistant can replace half of a full-time physician.

The authors are, respectively, Professor of Political Economy and graduate student, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. The authors are indebted to a referee who suggested an extremely helpful reorganization as part of his valuable critique. They would also like to thank Professors John Dunlop and Howard Raiffa for their helpful comments. This research was done under contract with the Health Services and Mental Health Administration, U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. A more extensive paper discusses physician assistant roles, licensure, training, classification, etc., and is available from the authors on request.

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