The physician associate profession in the UK is at a regulatory inflection point. GMC regulation of physician associates (PAs) and anaesthesia associates (AAs) has introduced the PARA — the national registration assessment that all PAs must pass to join the register and practise in the UK. This replaces the previous PANE (PA National Examination) administered by the FPA.
The exam is changing. The regulatory landscape is changing. And the revision resources available to PA candidates remain thin — with no established equivalent to the Q-bank ecosystem that doctors have with Passmedicine, Pastest, and Quesmed.
What Changed From PANE to PARA
Regulatory body shift. The FPA (Faculty of Physician Associates) previously administered the PANE. Under GMC regulation, the assessment becomes the PARA — administered or overseen by the GMC with a new governance structure.
Format evolution. The PARA consists of a written assessment (multiple-choice questions testing applied clinical knowledge) and a clinical assessment (OSCE-style stations testing practical clinical and communication skills). The written component tests the same breadth of clinical knowledge as the PANE — medicine, surgery, paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, psychiatry, emergency medicine — but mapped to the GMC's PA curriculum and aligned to the Physician Associate Scope of Practice framework.
Blueprint mapping. The assessment blueprint defines the proportion of questions from each clinical domain. Candidates should obtain the current blueprint from the GMC/FPA and use it to structure their revision — weighting their preparation to match the exam's weighting.
Prescribing context. PAs cannot currently prescribe independently in the UK (as of 2026 — legislative change is anticipated). The PARA tests clinical knowledge and management reasoning at PA scope of practice — including knowing when to escalate to a prescriber and when to refer.
Best PARA Revision Resources in 2026
iatroX PA Question Bank
iatroX provides an adaptive PA question bank covering the clinical domains tested in the PARA — the only adaptive Q-bank for PA candidates.
The adaptive engine targets your weakest clinical domains specifically. If your psychiatry knowledge is strong but your emergency medicine is weak, the engine serves more emergency medicine questions. Performance dashboard shows proficiency by clinical domain — matching the blueprint weighting.
NICE/CKS/BNF integration means explanations are grounded in the same UK guidelines that PA clinical practice references. Ask iatroX provides instant guideline answers for management queries.
Free for PA candidates at iatrox.com/boards.
Physician Associate textbooks
"The Physician Associate/Assistant — An Introduction" (Oxford University Press) provides the foundational curriculum overview. Clinical medicine textbooks (Kumar & Clark, Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine) cover the clinical knowledge base. Use these alongside question practice, not instead of it.
OSCE preparation
Geeky Medics (1,400+ OSCE stations) remains the strongest resource for the clinical assessment component. The clinical OSCE tests communication, examination, and procedural skills that textbooks and Q-banks cannot replace.
12-Week PARA Revision Plan
Weeks 1-2: Obtain the PARA blueprint. Run an iatroX baseline diagnostic across all clinical domains. Identify your three weakest areas.
Weeks 3-8: Systematic clinical domain coverage — one domain per week, weighted to match the blueprint. 30-40 adaptive questions daily on iatroX. Supplement with clinical medicine textbook reading for weak areas.
Weeks 9-10: Mixed-domain adaptive sessions. Full timed mock papers. OSCE practice with peers.
Weeks 11-12: Weak area consolidation. Guidelines review for commonly tested NICE pathways. Final mock under exam conditions.
Start at iatrox.com/boards — free adaptive PA Q-bank.