Shattuck Paves the Way for PAs in Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery

Alan Shattuck, MHS, PA-C, is the first physician assistant to be named to the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at Houston Methodist and is paving the way for the future of the career path. “I have a good deal of pride at being the first and am trying hard to be an asset to the team. I want to be as productive as I possibly can,” Shattuck said. “I’m trying to find creative ways to help the team and show the value of having an APP (Advanced Practice Provider) on the staff.” Shattuck notes that Houston Methodist uses the APP terminology to include physician assistants, nurse practitioners, nurse anesthetists, allied health professions and anyone in the clinician assistant category. “There’s not a single physician in this group that I haven’t had a meaningful conversation with. Everyone is a leader and shares their knowledge helpfully,” he added.

Shattuck spends a lot of his time working with Laura Kim, MD, MSc, and Nadia Mohyuddin, MD, FACS, as well as Professor and Chair Mas Takashima, MD, FACS, Syvia and James Norton Distinguished New Century Chair, Houston Methodist Academic Institute, and Omar Ahmed, MD. “I learn from them every single day. It’s been a unique opportunity that I’ve been presented with – to work with some of the very best. “You don’t even notice you’re dealing with average while you’re in it until you go up to that next level and really experience excellence,” he said. In his career, Shattuck frequently finds himself on committees or in leadership roles. In his role on the APP Council, he is now on the APP Outreach Committee. The Outreach Committee is working on ways for the clinicians to have touch points so they can share similar experiences and brainstorm possible solutions. The committee is creating a “buddy system” so they can plan group events, have meals together and even join in recreational sports together.

Alan Shattuck, MHS, PA-C

“It gives us a chance to talk about how we’re different and yet we all want to put the patient first. We have a heart and want to show a warm and tailored approach to each patient,” he said. “We’re fostering a team-based approach for APPs where we share our experiences and ideas. With the aging healthcare population and clinician shortage we’re facing, we hope to provide care on multiple levels. It’s really an exciting time,” he said.

I am a lifelong student and will always be very interested in various branches of medicine and patient care.

Alan Shattuck, MHS, PA-C

Shattuck came to Houston in January to be nearer to his wife Alina’s family. The two met in Atlanta and have been married for more than a year. “This move also gave me the opportunity to work at Houston Methodist, a high-quality healthcare center as was my goal,” he said. Shattuck has been in healthcare since he was 16 years old and was a transporter for the Radiology Department in Blount County, Tennessee, where his father Deaver Shattuck, MD, has practiced internal medicine for 25 years in their small hometown community. “That’s where I got to see the hospital as this living, breathing organism. It’s a microcosm of what community means. You see all the volunteers making sure the patients aren’t lost. Nurses who are really busy and dog tired but still giving their all. Physicians leading the charge. That’s when I knew I wanted to be a part of this.” Shattuck said his journey has been “unconventional,” starting when he played football for the Sewanee Tigers at The University of the South. He went on to EMT school and moved to Atlanta where he worked for an EMT service that saw a lot of emergency patients and served Grady Hospital, one of the nation’s busiest trauma centers. He followed up with his education at South College in Atlanta where he completed his Master of Science and Physician Assistant programs. “I am a lifelong student and will always very be interested in various branches of medicine and patient care,” he said, adding that cancer care is appealing to him because he wants to have a relationship with a patient over the long haul. “They are dealing with life-shifting and life-altering diagnosis. They need a great deal of support talking through their diagnosis. I put it all in a package that’s digestible. That way I’m able to support our surgeon and be a good patient resource.” He said he appreciates being able to realize a patient’s care from start to finish as with cancer patients. “You see them at their worst and at their best and then you can celebrate with them five years later when they are considered cancer free. “I don’t know any other job you’re able to do that. It’s so rewarding. I get to interact with the world.”