[mills3186]

The health care systems are generally overburdened, the mid-level practitioners in that specialty (PA's and NP's) are there to do an initial evaluation and triage as needed. After reviewing x-rays and determining if any additional tests are needed, they would refer you right away to one of the orthopods they work with. The orthopedic surgeons are generally not consulted if surgery is not needed since their time is too valuable for non-surgical cases. If the PA has any question or concerns about the x-rays, they would discuss with the Doc. The Ortho PA's I worked with in the past were extremely knowledgeable and talented.