PA Class of 2027 Celebrated at White Coat Ceremony

Thirty-nine new physician associate students donned white coats on Aug. 22 at the Yale School of Medicine (YSM) Physician Associate (PA) Program’s White Coat Ceremony. Family, friends, and members of the YSM community gathered in YSM’s Mary S. Harkness Auditorium to celebrate the PA Class of 2027.

In welcoming remarks, PA Program Director David Brissette, MMSc, PA-C, explained that the event marks the transition from classroom learning to clinical practice, symbolizing professionalism, integrity, and the responsibilities of a clinician.

“Today, as you don your white coat,” he told the students, “you step into a role that will not only challenge your intellect, but also call upon your compassion and commitment to serve others.”

Keynote speaker Kevin O'Hara, MMSc’08, PA-C, a graduate of Yale’s PA Program, stated that since its origins, the white coat ceremony has symbolized “a clinician's commitment to compassionate medicine.” O’Hara shared that when he was a first-year PA student in 2007, he experienced YSM’s inaugural White Coat Ceremony, which was held in a classroom.

From those “modest origins,” he said, the school’s ceremony, “has blossomed into a magnificent celebration, noting, “This progress reflects the evolution of the PA profession itself, with our PAs now entrusted with highly technical, intricate clinical tasks that directly shape and impact patient outcomes.”

O’Hara is the lead advanced practice provider for Long Island at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and an associate clinical professor in the Physician Assistant Program at New York Institute of Technology.

Patient-centered compassionate care was a central theme of the keynote and throughout the gathering. O’Hara explained that “it’s crucial to acknowledge the often-unseen roots” of challenges such as chronic inflammation, non-adherence to treatment, and delayed care, pointing out that, “Many health outcomes attributed solely to individual choices or medical factors are deeply intertwined with socioeconomic conditions and systemic inequalities.”

Continuing, he shared that navigating food and housing insecurity and prejudice not only impacts a patient’s opportunity to access quality health care, but “can instigate the body's stress response system and lead to the release of stress hormones,” adding, “There is a direct biologic mechanism for how some of our most vulnerable patients will have poorer outcomes.”

Telling the students that their “unique vantage point as a clinician is a privilege and a burden,” O’Hara encouraged them to “do your best to advocate for these patients, identify resources, inform policy.”

Turning to another aspect of compassionate care, O’Hara said that when he was an EMT, a seasoned medic told him, “for you this is just another call,” but for the person receiving help, “it could be the worst day of their life.” While noting many students may appreciate this perspective, especially in the context of acute emergencies, O’Hara advised, “it’s just as important to carry this awareness into the realm of chronic illness—where the slow erosion of independence, the loss of social roles, financial strain, and the persistent weight of pain and other symptoms can also be devastating.”

O’Hara emphasized it is essential that the students “truly get to know” their patients, “to understand how their illness and treatment plan intersect with their goals, fears, and daily realities.” O’Hara assured the students they would receive training to help them develop these skills, adding that 15 years into his career, he is “still learning how to do this well.”

Brissette similarly focused on compassionate, patient-centered care. Acknowledging technology can guide health professionals—for example, AI can help analyze data faster and spot patterns that might otherwise be missed—he emphasized, “it cannot replace the wisdom gained through your studies, the skills honed at the bedside, or the human connection that is at the heart of healing. Your greatest tools will remain the knowledge and skill that you learn in the classroom and build on in the clinic, as well as the empathy you show in every patient encounter.”

Like O’Hara, Brissette stressed the importance of getting to know patients. He told the students they would learn the technical skills essential for practice, “but just as importantly, you will learn to see and honor the story behind every patient. Each diagnosis belongs to a person, a person who deserves respect, dignity, and compassion. That is the privilege and responsibility of wearing the white coat.”

Deputy Dean for Education Jessica Illuzzi, MD, MS, similarly advised the students, “Just as you learn each other’s stories, learn the stories of your patients so that you will always see them as individuals. You will be there to serve in the most vulnerable moments of their lives.” She cited Eugene Stead, MD, the founder of the PA profession, for noting that a health professional “makes a mistake if he or she thinks he or she knows more about a patient than the patient does himself.” Illuzzi encouraged the students to, “Listen to your patients and please remember that caring for them is an extraordinary honor.”

In addition to receiving their white coat, each new student received a stethoscope, provided through donations from PA Program alumni. Brissette explained, “More than an instrument, the stethoscope is a symbol of connection: between patient and provider, and between alumni and students across generations. Many alumni have included personal messages with their gifts, reminding you that you are part of a larger family that believes in your success.”

Similarly reflecting the connection across classes, second-year PA students helped each first-year student don their white coat, and in return, the second-year students received a YSM crest pin, which, Brissette explained, is “a reminder that when you reach your goals, it is your responsibility to help those who follow.”

O’Hara’s role as the keynote was another manifestation of connection across generations. He closed his remarks by referring to 2007, when he was in the same position as the new students and asking questions such as, “Will I be able to meet the demands of this challenging career?”

He shared personal setbacks, including failing his hematology/oncology assessment, before noting, “I now help lead an oncology team at a world leading cancer center.” He emphasized that he was rejected from 10 leadership roles he applied for, prior to earning his current position.

Reflecting, he told the students, “This experience highlights the need to embrace failures, learn from them, and strive to be your best self, working alongside very skilled faculty and receiving support from loved ones."