This year, the NCAPA Membership and Marketing Committee received a number of submissions and the committee conducted a thorough review of the nominations for this year’s group of very deserving PAs. We are so excited to announce that the 2024 PA of the Year is…
Emily Epling, MA, PA-C
PA Epling has been a PA for 30 years. She is a graduate of the Wake Forest University’s PA Program, and has obtained her Master’s degree in Executive Leadership from Liberty University. “Back then, I found myself really having to explain to people what a PA is,” she says. “I think we’ve come a long way from that point. Most people now know what a PA is and really embrace them as part of the care team.”
She is currently practicing in Winston-Salem, NC at Novant Health Malignant Hematology Transplant and Cellular Therapy Program, as well as serving as the Chief Advanced Practice Officer. She currently serves as the Vice President of the Novant Health Insurance Protected Cell board, Vice President of the NCAPA, and is involved with the North Carolina Advanced Practice Alliance Group.
As said by those that had submitted her nomination, “She has transformed the role of physician assistants/associates and all APPs at our health system by elevating APPs and their ability to increase patient access, deliver safe, quality care, and be a trusted partner for our physician colleagues and in the healthcare journey of our patients.”
Additionally, her nominators describe her as “a humble, servant leader with a heart for service. Her work outcomes and leadership style speak for itself. Her stellar reputation has landed her positions where she serves currently as the Vice President of the Novant Health Insurance Protected Cell board and Vice President of the North Carolina Association of Physician Assistants (NCAPA).”
PA Epling advocates for an APP structure within our system which strategically puts the APP voice in the spaces and places of most importance to our APPs and the patients they serve. This has allowed our APPs to feel valued, heard and celebrated.“
“At all stages along the healthcare career journey, she has been teaching, precepting, and mentoring,” her nominators say. “In a unique program called Bridges to Healthcare, she leads sessions for high school students interested in health careers, highlighting the opportunities of a career in advanced practice, with her focus on physician assistant/associate role. In the graduate education space, she precepts for local PA programs. In the post graduate environment, she leads the work in our transition to practice program for new graduate APPs. PA Epling identified a need for a space dedicated to APPs for networking, connection, peer to peer mentoring and development. She worked with system leaders to create an APP Business Resource Group (BRG) where she served as the founder of the APP BRG.”

NCAPA’s PA of the Year award honors a PA who has demonstrated exemplary service to the profession and the community, and who has furthered the image of the PA profession while providing significant contributions to the health of the citizens of North Carolina.
JANUARY 8th, 2025 – NCAPA Immediate Past President, Andrea McKinnond, PA-C presented the 2024 North Carolina PA of the Year award to PA Epling.
Andrea was joined by Emily Adams, NCAPA CEO, and Caroline Purdy, NCAPA Director of Membership, at an honorary dinner celebrating PA Epling in Winston, Salem, NC.
Congratulations, PA Epling! Thank you for all you do your patients, profession, and beyond.
To learn more about PA Epling, click here to read her full Member interview on NCAPA.org.