After 7+ years of school you can't find a job where you want? Consider this... The major Metropolitan areas are saturated with physicians. Maybe it's time to broaden your scope; maybe even make more money! There are always considerations but looking at the map, reveals finding a job in your "ideal" location may not be as easy as you think. Major city hospitals have training programs that retain most of their graduates throwing off the whole "supply and demand" theory. If you look a bit closer you will see many opportunities exist within reasonable driving distances. Community Health Centers and rural health clinics often offer loan forgiveness as part of the compensation package (all dependent upon the HPSA score). If you are seriously looking for a new job or know someone who is- we can help! Let us put you directly in contact with the hiring authority. No head hunters, no pressure.

This entry was posted on May 15, 2012 at 12:12 PM and has received 0 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

From the early 1930's prognosticators reported physician shortages. Several times governments, hospitals and the populous prepared for shortages that never materialized. One shortage prediction actually resulted in a physician surplus. No wonder today's predictions of physician shortages are met with less than a dramatic response.

The Third Party Physician Recruiting industry is often the source for much of the data associated with physician demographic and employment information. Each year the surveys and studies quoted are by those tasked with finding employment for physicians. In an industry where there is so little trust between third party recruiters and those they work for it is no wonder that there is some skepticism.

However, organizations outside the recruiting industry are confirming what the industry is reporting. The Association of American Medical Colleges predicts that by 2025, the US health system will have 46,000 fewer primary care physicians than it needs. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts there will be 212,000 physician openings by 2014 due to growth and net replacement of retiring physicians. That number represents more than 25 percent of the current physician work force. Adding to the shortage is the aging population. The National Ambulatory Healthcare Administration says people ages 66 and older average six physician office visits per year; individuals ages 46 to 65 average 5.4 visits annually; and people 25 to 35 years old average 2.2 visits a year. Increasing numbers of older patients mean heightened healthcare demand (PhysiciansPractice.com).

My father lives in a community of about 111,000. He reports wait times of up to six (6) weeks to see his primary care physician and then he frequently sees the PA or NP. In 2008, he experienced extreme fatigue. His primary care office suggested some blood work to see what was going on and "waiting to see how he was feeling in a few days." Fortunately my mom was not "waiting to see." She insisted they drive 30 miles to see a Cardiologist. In less than a week, he was on the table for bypass surgery. Good thing he did not wait on his primary care doctor.

Hype or not, the physician market is dramatically realigning as:

• The list of hospitals and practices looking to recruit grows daily.

• The shortage of Internists or Family Practitioners in rural areas or densely populated cities is expanding to areas previously unaffected.

• Increasingly more graduating physicians are opting to specialize

• The future of health care reform will move delivery of primary care from the emergency rooms to the practice office as the uninsured receive medical coverage.

• The recent health care reform and emphasis on government spending is causing doctors to move to employed positions in hospitals and facilities to avoid the risks of private practice.

• The shortage notwithstanding, many facilities are still not interested in foreign medical graduates or older more experienced physicians.

So, empirical evidence and the experts seem to support the shortage. If you are a doctor looking to move or one about to graduate, how does this affect you? What are your thoughts?

This entry was posted on December 14, 2011 at 1:08 PM and has received 134 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.