Jillian O'Brien, MPAS, PA-C
Professor O’Brien is a principal faculty member at Stony Brook’s Physician Assistant Program. She currently holds the title of clinical assistant professor. In 2008, she graduated from SUNY- Cortland, Summa Cum Laude, with a bachelor of science in Athletic Training. She worked as a certified athletic trainer for several years, primarily in the high school setting. In 2012 she graduated from the New York Institute of Technology with a Master in Physician Assistant Studies. She graduated with multiple accolades including the Alpha Eta award. After working in outpatient orthopedics immediately following graduation, she transitioned to inpatient orthopedics at NYU Winthrop Hospital. Her experience in orthopedics includes joint arthroplasty, the use of robotics in total joint arthroplasty, arthroscopic surgery, orthopedic trauma and fracture care as well as geriatric and fragility fractures. She is still a clinically active physician assistant predominantly in the field of orthopedics.
She started her career in PA education while working alongside preceptors and helped to teach PA students during their clinical orthopedic rotation. In 2016, she began teaching clinical medicine, primarily in the topics of orthopedics and rheumatology and served as adjunct faculty at the NYIT PA program in Old Westbury. She transitioned from clinical practice to academia to become a full-time Clinical Assistant Professor at Stony Brook University in 2019. A reason for the transition includes her passion regarding the importance of teaching patient-centered care and professionalism starting when a student first sets foot inside the classroom.
Her teaching experiences include anatomy and physiology, clinical medicine coursework, and clinical skills labs.
Outside of work, Professor O’Brien enjoys spending time with her family which includes her husband and two young sons. They enjoy traveling (primarily out West), sports and many outdoor activities, especially ones where they are able to include their rescued lab-mix.
