Physician Assistant Education Announces New Medical Director
Saint Louis University’s Department of Physician Assistant Education recently announced Fred Rottnek, M.D., MAHCM, will be the new medical director of the Physician Assistant program. The role of the medical director is to help guide the program from a physician’s point of view.
Rottnek will be actively involved in the Physician Assistant program and will be responsible for ensuring that the medical content of the curriculum is in concert with current standards of practice and is at the appropriate level and breadth for PA students. It is also the responsibility of the medical director to be an advocate for the Physician Assistant profession and for the SLU PA Program and to be active in eliciting the understanding and support of practicing physicians, the University and the community.
“I am delighted to be the new medical director for the PA Department,” Rottnek said. “The SLU PA program has an extraordinary record of training highly effective and collaboration-ready physician assistants. I look forward to contributing my clinical experience and community connections to this outstanding program.”
Rottnek began working with PAs during his family medicine residency at Deaconess Hospital. He later served as a faculty physician in his residency program, Family Medicine of St. Louis, and completed a Faculty Development Fellowship at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
After working for several years in correctional health care, homeless health care and in neighborhood health centers, he completed a Master of Arts in health care mission at Aquinas Institute of Theology. In 2008, Rottnek joined SLU’s Department of Family and Community Medicine, where he is a professor and director of Community Medicine. He teaches in the School of Medicine and the Interprofessional Education Program, directs the Rodney M. Coe Distinction in Community Service Program and mentors students in longitudinal community service.
He also serves on the Saint Louis Regional Health Commission as the chair of the Provider Services Advisory Board, as well as serving on the board of the Criminal Justice Ministry. Most recently he joined the Concordance Academy of Leadership as the Medical Consultant to build the health services model for reentering participants. Additionally, he acts as medical director for St. Louis Effort for AIDS. He is currently working with colleagues in the SLU community and with national organizations to promote training and practice in addiction medicine.
Rottnek is eager to use his experience to help the SLU PA Program, and the profession of physician assistant, continue to thrive.
“I have trained and worked with SLU PA students and faculty throughout my career,” Rottnek said. “I see this as an excellent opportunity to further my understanding of interprofessional collaborative practice, to promote and integrate the PA profession at SLUCare practices and to advocate for the profession on a regional and national level.”