Burn and Frostbite injuries represent two extremes of thermal trauma that can result in significant morbidity, long term disability, and mortality if not managed promptly and effectively. Despite differing mechanisms - heat induced coagulative necrosis in burns and cold - induced cellular injury and microvascular thrombosis in frostbite - both conditions require rapid assessment, early resuscitation, and coordinated multidisciplinary care to optimize outcomes.

This presentation reviews pathophysiology, classification, and current evidence- based management of burns and frostbite injuries across the continuum of care. Key topics include initial assessment of burns, estimation of total body surface area, fluid resuscitation strategies, pain control, wound care and indications for surgical intervention. For Frostbite injuries, emphasis will be focused on rewarming techniques, vasodilators considerations, wound management and prevention of secondary tissue loss.

By integrating current guidelines with practical clinical strategies, this session aims to enhance provider confidence in recognizing, stabilizing and managing thermal injuries, as well as early identification of injuries that potentially might require further referral and specialized care in burn centres. The ultimate goal is to improve patient outcomes in both acute and specialized care environments.

Anaphylaxis is a life threatening hypersensitivity reaction with rapid systemic onset characterized by airway, breathing and circulatory problems associated with skin and mucosal changes and may cause death.1 This reaction occurs when IgE antibodies or direct mast cells are activated causing a sudden release of chemical mediators like histamine from mast cells and basophils.2 Most common causes of anaphylaxis include reactions to foods, insect stings, medications and latex.1 The treatment is solely IM Epinephrine. The purpose of this presentation is to review anaphylaxis by definition, IgE mediated presentations, review treatment and further enhance knowledge about biphasic anaphylaxis for physician assistants.

Biphasic reactions are signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis which can occur up to 12-14 hours after the initial phase of the reaction has waned.3 Biphasic reactions require the same treatment with Epinephrine IM as soon as possible, however, occur through a different pathway. There are mild to severe complications associated with biphasic reactions. Keeping biphasic anaphylaxis in mind is vital for patient safety, observation times after giving the epinephrine dose should be minimum 6-8 hours depending on severity of symptoms.4 This presentation demonstrates using evidence based medicine the appropriate observation time for biphasic anaphylaxis and compares multiple studies and outcomes.

For physician assistants in the critical care role or outpatient primary care, knowledge about anaphylaxis and biphasic reactions is vital given the high mortality and morbidity. With rapid recognition and treatment there is a potential to prevent multiple deaths and/or serious complications.

Impact in Action: Neuroplasticity at the Bedside and Beyond — Neuroplasticity is more than a theoretical concept; it is a practical, actionable framework that directly shapes how PAs assess, treat, and advocate for patients with neurological injury. This session translates the science of neuroplasticity into strategies that can be immediately applied in clinical care, emphasizing active, goal-directed rehabilitation over passive recovery. From a patient care perspective, PAs will learn to design targeted, task-specific interventions that optimize recovery, reinforce functional gains, and minimize maladaptive patterns. In everyday clinical practice, this understanding enhances the ability to counsel patients and families, set realistic expectations, and incorporate key principles such as repetition, intensity, and salience into routine care. From an educational standpoint, PAs are better equipped to teach colleagues, learners, and patients how the brain adapts and recovers, fostering engagement and adherence to rehabilitation plans. At a systems level, applying neuroplastic principles supports early, purposeful intervention, improves care transitions, and reduces inefficiencies associated with delayed or fragmented rehabilitation. Additionally, this knowledge strengthens the PA’s role in policy and advocacy by supporting efforts to improve access to timely, evidence-based rehabilitation services. Ultimately, this session brings neuroplasticity to life, demonstrating how informed, intentional clinical decisions can translate into meaningful improvements in function, independence, and quality of life—truly embodying “Impact in Action.

The clinical PA career trajectory typically involves three phases- novice, developing and experienced. For many PAs, once they reach a level of experience and confidence that allows them to function efficiently and comfortably in clinical practice, they begin to wonder about opportunities for career expansion. Canadian PAs have successfully pursued roles in teaching, research, entrepreneurship, management & community outreach. This panel discussion will explore the pathways of impactful PAs and highlight their professional advocacy skills. Panelists will discuss their career advancement journey, challenges they overcame and rewards they achieved by expanding their roles in clinical and nonclinical settings. Attendees will have the opportunity to reflect on their own career development and set strategic goals for growth in an attainable way.

Let's stay up to date on gynecologic topics! In this session we will review what is new in the literature and practice guidelines for obstetric, gynecologic and urogynecologic care. Updates on endometriosis diagnosis guidelines, partner treatment in BV, menopause treatment and much much more. Opportunity for a gynecology "ask me anything" at the end of the presentation to help improve your patient care.

Clinical reasoning is the defining skill of every clinician, yet it often remains invisible—taught implicitly and assumed rather than explicitly modeled. For physician assistants (PAs) supervising learners in real-world practice, the challenge is magnified by time pressures, patient flow, and competing clinical demands. This session explores practical strategies for teaching clinical reasoning without slowing care or overburdening supervisors. Attendees will learn how to recognize and articulate the thought processes behind decision-making, use brief teaching moments effectively, and integrate reflective questioning into routine patient encounters. By making clinical reasoning visible, supervisors can foster learners’ diagnostic skills, improve patient care, and support the development of independent, reflective clinicians—even in high-volume, time-constrained environments. This session is designed for PAs, preceptors, and clinical educators seeking actionable strategies to enhance teaching impact at the bedside.

Navigating care for a dialysis patient can be intimidating for most clinicians. We see patients who are on dialysis in every avenue of our health care system. Whether it’s providing care in the emergency department, specialty clinics or family practice, you are guaranteed to see dialysis patients in you career.

We will use case presentations to demonstrate when a patient would need to start dialysis urgently or from slow progressive chronic kidney disease.

Understanding the prognosis of a patient with end stage renal disease you can appreciate the detail in choosing a dialysis modality to enhance a Patients quality of life and their choice of vascular access.

Once a patient has chosen dialysis for their end stage renal disease diagnosis they need an entire team to navigate their next journey through the healthcare system. To optimize care provided by physician assistants, we will discuss topics including: hypertension, electrolyte abnormalities, diabetes management, anticoagulation, bone mineral metabolism, anemia, and coronary artery disease.

Lastly, we will round out the session by discussing who is a renal transplant candidate, the work up needed for approval and anticipated wait times for deceased donor or living donor recipients.

I hope by the end of this presentation you have more confidence when treating a dialysis patient. We foster the collaboration between nephrology and all other specialties for the support of our dialysis population.

Back by popular demand! Join your colleagues for a fun-filled, delightfully nerdy medical trivia competition. Participants will have the chance work in small groups to demonstrate their knowledge across general and specialized medical topics and review key concepts. This interactive session will be packed with fun, learning and a bit of friendly rivalry.

Urgent care clinicians frequently evaluate high-volume, low-acuity complaints where common diagnoses (“horses”) predominate. However, rare but high-risk conditions (“zebras”) may present with subtle or nonspecific features, creating a risk for missed or delayed diagnosis in fast-paced settings. Recognizing these atypical presentations is critical to improving patient safety and outcomes.

This presentation reviews the management of common urgent care complaints while expanding differential diagnoses to include clinically significant “zebras.” Participants will learn to identify key historical clues, physical exam findings, and red flag symptoms that warrant additional workup or escalation of care. We will define “zebras” in the urgent care context, focusing on conditions that mimic benign presentations yet carry potential for serious morbidity if overlooked.

This topic is highly impactful, as urgent care providers play a pivotal role in early detection of serious illness. Strengthening the ability to recognize when a common complaint may represent a serious diagnosis can reduce diagnostic error, prevent complications, and improve continuity of care. Attendees will gain actionable tools to enhance clinical reasoning and confidently identify “zebras” in everyday practice.

In emergency medicine, the greatest challenge is often not making the diagnosis but deciding what to do next. Determining which conditions require urgent intervention, structured follow-up, or no further escalation is critical to patient safety, resource stewardship, and high-quality care. This session will use a case-based approach to explore common ED diagnoses that create uncertainty in disposition and next-step management. Through practical, high-yield cases — including first seizure, new atrial fibrillation, and selected orthopedic injuries, participants will review evidence-informed management pathways and practical decision thresholds. Emphasis will be placed on recognizing conditions that require immediate action, identifying presentations that can be safely managed with outpatient follow-up, and avoiding unnecessary investigations and referrals. Building on a highly rated session delivered at CAPA 2025, this presentation will provide physician assistants with clear, practical frameworks to navigate uncertainty at the point of care, supporting safer discharges, more efficient use of resources, and improved continuity across care settings.

Pediatric musculoskeletal injuries present unique diagnostic and management challenges, with missed or delayed diagnoses carrying significant consequences for patient outcomes. This session, aligned with the conference theme “ImPAct in Action!”, equips clinicians with practical strategies to recognize, triage, and manage high-yield pediatric cases, including septic arthritis, compartment syndrome, elbow and forearm fractures. It also highlights commonly missed paediatric musculoskeletal injuries, as well as commonly overtreated paediatric injuries.

Participants will explore evidence-informed approaches to radiograph interpretation, emergency management strategies, and immobilization techniques, while emphasizing patient safety and clinical efficiency. The session also highlights the role of the PA Orthopaedic Navigator in optimizing referral pathways from emergency and community providers to fracture clinics, demonstrating a system-level solution that reduces delays, streamlines care, and improves patient outcomes.

By combining clinical pearls, case-based discussion, and practical workflow strategies, attendees will leave prepared to enhance their diagnostic accuracy, implement timely interventions, and integrate collaborative care models into practice. This session showcases impact in action by improving patient care, supporting interprofessional collaboration, and strengthening system efficiency in pediatric fracture management.

A: “In this panel discussion, multiple contestants vie for CAPA glory in a classic game show format.”

Q: “What is JePARODY: OB/ER/PSYCH/???? edition?”

That's right folks, join us for this once in a lifetime event to see Gabe DeMone battle it out with Erin Unger and Katrina Pullia to see who can get to the diagnosis first. Gabe, a lifer in the ED is quick and keen to diagnose fast. Erin, a lifer in gynecology, doesn’t really care about things above the umbilicus or below the knees. Katrina, a lifer in psych, can really tackle social determinants of health, but what about below the collar bone? Watch how they battle to see what the chief complaint might be!

Don’t tell them, but topics will include common abdominopelvic presentations in both the ED and the family medical office. To keep things fun any system is up for grabs so consider this a great (and fun?) review of clinical reasoning. Heckling is not only allowed, but encouraged.

RF, CCP, ANA, dsDNA - what does this mean? As Physician Assistants, we need to recognize when it is appropriate to refer to rheumatology. With more PAs working as first-line providers in primary care and emergency settings, it is increasingly important to recognize how to approach patients presenting with possible inflammatory disease. This session will focus on identifying features of inflammatory pain, reviewing key clinical clues to common rheumatologic disease, and outlining the initial workup for suspected inflammatory arthritis or autoimmune disease. Attendees will also learn what evaluations can be initiated prior to rheumatology referral to facilitate timely diagnosis and management.

Feedback is widely recognized as an essential component of professional growth in both PA education and clinical practice. Most PAs acknowledge its value in developing competence and progressing toward expertise. Yet in day-to-day practice, feedback is often avoided, undervalued, or poorly received. This is not surprising – feedback can be difficult to give and even more difficult to receive, and many PAs have experienced uncomfortable or ineffective feedback moments.

This session aims to demystify the process of giving and receiving feedback by reframing it as a dynamic, relational process rather than a one-way transfer of information. Drawing on current medical education literature, including feedback literacy, coaching models, and psychologically safe learning environments, we will explore best practices for improving feedback in both academic and clinical contexts.

We will develop an appreciation for the psychological responses that feedback can evoke. Understanding these responses can help PAs and learners engage more productively with feedback and enable educators, peers, and supervisors to deliver it in ways that are constructive and well-received. Participants will be introduced to practical strategies, including structured feedback conversations, reflective prompts, and techniques to enhance learner receptivity. Common barriers, such as time constraints and hierarchical dynamics, will also be addressed.

By reframing feedback as an ongoing component of lifelong learning, this session supports more meaningful and effective professional growth.

This session will review ten potentially practice changing articles from the recent literature. The articles are chosen for there relevance and likelhood of chagning current practice.

The Articles are chosen by a team of Academic Physicians from Dalhousie University. The artcles come from acadmeic Journal clubs and trusted sources including; Primary Care Rap, Best Bets, and Peer.

Foot and lower-limb complaints are a frequent reason patients seek primary and urgent care, yet conservative, function-focused management is often fragmented across the system. Canadian Certified Pedorthists are allied healthcare professionals trained in lower-limb anatomy and biomechanics who specialise in assessment, gait analysis, and the design, fitting, and modification of custom foot orthotics, orthopaedic footwear, and related interventions. As collaborative members of the healthcare team, Pedorthists routinely work alongside physicians, nurse practitioners, and other providers to support mobility, reduce pain, and help patients maintain healthy, active lives.

This session aims to strengthen awareness, referral confidence, and interprofessional advocacy for pedorthic care within the broader healthcare community. Attendees will leave with a practical collaboration framework: when pedorthic referral is most helpful, what to include in prescriptions and shared documentation, and how orthotics, footwear, and therapeutic modifications can complement medical management plans. The session will also address common barriers (patient expectations, access, and coverage discussions) and provide language to support patient-centred, team-based decision-making.

More information Coming Soon.