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Kaiser Permanente
Santa Clara, California

Senior Physician Assistant - Plastic Surgery - Santa Clara 40hrs/Days/8's

Physician AssistantIncludes callIncludes weekendsFull-Time

Compensation

Pay not listed

The week · per this posting · weekdays assumed

Ask the employer about the pay range, the work setting, nights and shift pattern and time off.

Posted 4mo ago

Job Description

Under the direction of a supervising physician, the Senior Physician Assistant provides high quality, efficient, team based patient focused care. The Senior Physician Assistant responsibilities may include managing patients in the office, hospital, ED and/or perioperative setting.

The Senior Physician Assistant may be required to First Assist in the OR or perform other department specific procedures. The Senior Physician Assistant may also facilitate on call responsibilities for his/her supervising physician.

The Senior Physician Assistants daily responsibilities may vary based upon the department & supervising physician needs and may require evening or weekend hours.

The Senior Physician Assistant, by virtue of his/her experience and competency in the role, provides a high level of clinical and operational expertise and may function as a mentor to less experienced Physician Assistants.

Essential Responsibilities

The Physician Assistant will practice as part of a team under the direction of their supervising physician.

Primary Duties will be inclusive of the following but not limited to:

Examines patient, performs comprehensive physical examination, and compiles patient medical data, including health history and results of physical examination.

Administers or orders diagnostic tests, such as imaging studies, electrocardiogram, and laboratory tests, and interprets test results for deviations from normal.

Performs therapeutic procedures such as injections, immunizations, suturing and wound care, and managing infection.

Performs other department specific diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.

Develops and implements patient management plans, records progress notes, and assists in provision of continuity of care.

Instructs and counsels patients regarding compliance with prescribed therapeutic regimens, normal growth and development, family planning, emotional problems of daily living, and health maintenance and other relevant patient education.

  • Based upon Specific Specialty, additional duties may include the following:
  • Facilitate admissions, transfers, discharges.
  • First assist in surgeries or perform procedures as applicable.
  • Round on inpatients.

Performs admission evaluation on patients to include: obtaining basic medical information and history, reviewing patients medical record, performing physical exam, documenting findings into patient medical record, and reporting deviations from normal findings to attending physician.

Provides patient and family with pre-operative/pre-procedure and other pertinent education.

Answers questions regarding surgery or procedures, recovery and risk factor modification; provides blood transfusion information as applicable; performs peri-operative procedures; locates and utilizes diagnostic images, instruments and pertinent patient information.

Reviews patient chart noting allergies, pertinent medical history, and abnormal physical findings.

Assists in performing surgical procedures and other procedures consistent with the standards of care and practice guidelines.

Depending on the specialty, may work as the First Assist during surgical procedures, start IVs, and/or perform suturing.

Performs post-operative procedures to include entering standard post-operative orders into patient medical records; assists physicians with evaluation and management of patients status during recovery; reviews vital signs, laboratory and diagnostic studies; assists with management of patients.

Facilitates patient discharge; dictates discharge and transfer summaries in a timely manner.

Other Duties

The Senior Physician Assistant provides a high level of clinical and operational expertise and may function as a mentor to less experienced Physician Assistants.

May collaborate with the supervising physician, manager and other department members on performance improvement activities.

Basic Qualifications

Experience

Minimum three (3) years previous experience in the last five (5) years as a physician assistant.

Education

  • Graduate from an ARC-PA accredited physician assistant program.
  • License, Certification, Registration
  • Physician Assistant License (California) required at hire
  • National Provider Identifier required at hire
  • Physician Assistant National Certificate required at hire
  • Basic Life Support

Additional Requirements

Fluoroscopy Permit required, or must be obtained within 18 months from the date of hire in Orthopedics, Interventional Radiology, and Radiation Oncology only.

May be required to have experience and competency in performing specific tasks required by the specific department.

Must be able to work in a Labor/Management Partnership environment.

Preferred Qualifications

Advanced Certification in specialty area, preferred.

Key Responsibilities

Provide high-quality, team-based patient care in office, hospital, and perioperative settings under physician supervision. Responsibilities include performing physical exams, first assisting in surgeries, and mentoring less experienced Physician Assistants.

Requirements

Requires a graduate degree from an ARC-PA accredited program and a valid California Physician Assistant license. Candidates must have at least three years of experience within the last five years and hold a National Provider Identifier and BLS certification.

Qualifications

Education
Master's degree (postgraduate degree)
Experience
2+ years of experience

Key Skills

Surgical First AssistingDiagnostic InterpretationPerioperative CareClinical MentorshipMedical DocumentationInpatient RoundingInfection Management

Surgery — Physician Assistant Career Context

Of the 50 active Surgery listings this role was benchmarked against, 6% are remote, 62% have no call, 54% require no weekends.

Surgery pay on WeekdayDoc is up 3.4% vs. the prior quarter (through Sep 2026).

The cost-of-living index for California is 110.7 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)). 63.6% of California clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

Top Physician Assistant Jobs

50 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution50 jobs · 37 employers

15
<$170k
14
$170k-185k
16
$185k-200k
2
$200k-215k
3
$215k+

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks39 jobs · 37 employers

401k / retirement match
79% this job
CME allowance
72% this job
Sign-on bonus
54%
Relocation assistance
15%
Loan repayment
13%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

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$91.68-$121.48/hr
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Clinic Director - Physician Assistant (PA-C) or Nurse Practitioner (NP)

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#4

Physician Assistant- Dr. Fealy

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+ 48 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

median 1.7this job 1.5
Better work-life than 30% of Surgery (PA) listings

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 359 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

  • Includes call
  • Includes weekends

Living in Santa Clara

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$1.68M
Typical market rent
$3,957/mo
Residents’ average commute
23 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
110.4
State income tax
Up to 13.3%
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Aug 2026), Zillow market rents (Aug 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.

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About Kaiser Permanente

Medical Practices
Oakland, California
51-200 employees

Benefits & Perks

Kaiser Permanente benefits package
401k match
Malpractice coverage
CME allowance