VISTA Voice

The physician assistant landscape is continually evolving, offering impressive career growth potential for men and women choosing to enter the field. With PA jobs expected to increase by 31% between 2018 and 2028, the PA industry is primed to grow much faster than average over the next decade. But while more PAs are completing their training, their primary care potential will remain limited as long as PAs remain concentrated in metropolitan areas. Below is a look at the changing role of physician assistants and a look at some of the efforts underway to help PAs address the shortage of primary care doctors.

The physician shortage in the United States is not going away anytime soon. New data from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) supports previous estimates, projecting shortfalls between 46,900 and 121,900 doctors by 2032. That means job opportunities will always be abundant, and a career in locum tenens can open doors wherever you want to go—so when looking ahead to future work, the choice is truly yours.

The Association of American Medical Colleges found that, by 2032, the expected shortage of physicians will be around 122,000 professionals. Approximately 65,000 of those will be specialists, while the remaining amount will be primary care physicians. 

The result of a low supply of physicians and an aging population is that individuals and families will have less access to medical care if nothing is done. Despite the challenges associated with physician shortages, it is important to highlight some of the benefits of hiring physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and other advanced practice clinicians.

For years, some areas have suffered a shortage of physicians. This has been brought about by a combination of factors, including the aging population, general population growth, a lack of capacity at medical schools, and the amount of time it takes for someone to go all the way through the relevant training. 

According to the American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC), the United States will have a shortage of up to 122,000 physicians by 2032. This includes both primary care providers and specialists.

The AAMC estimates that in order to equalize medical accessibility across geographic location, race, and insurance coverage, 95,900 doctors would need to be added immediately. These would be in addition to those needed to meet health professional shortage areas.

Meanwhile, advanced practice providers (APPs) like NPs (nurse practitioner) and PAs (physician assistant) are growing in number. By 2030, it is projected that there will be 53.9 APPs per 100 physicians, according to Fierce Healthcare. This has already led to APPs taking over many of the duties once reserved for doctors.

Right now, there are articles everywhere about telehealth and how those services can benefit your patients. It prevents patients from exposing one another--and, in many cases, employees in your office--to COVID-19 and other illnesses. Not only does it help improve patient outcomes, but telehealth is also actively preferred by a majority of patients. You may already be familiar with the many benefits of telehealth for your patients--but information about the benefits that telehealth can bring to providers and practices is less prevalent. 

We all feel stress from time to time. When it’s within our comfort zone, a little stress is healthy and can motivate us to perform at our best. However, needing to manage an overwhelming level of stress on a regular basis can have serious health effects—like anxiety and depression, sleep disorders, cardiovascular disease, relationship issues and more.

The Match is something every doctor remembers. Years of school, intense study and preparation lead to this moment when medical students learn where they will spend their next three to eight years or more in specialty training.

Match Week 2020 is here, with Match Day on Friday, March 20th. To all medical students heading into Match Week — congratulations! No matter what happens, you’ve worked hard to get here and should be proud of your accomplishments.

In the evolving world of healthcare, advanced practice clinicians are poised to play an important role in helping fill physician shortages at hospitals and other medical centers in underserved areas.

In medicine, institutional goals use three primary measures – clinical, financial, and operational – and there is a tradeoff if you have limited resources and staffing. For instance, increasing patient satisfaction (clinical) may decrease throughput (operational) as you devote more time and energy to each individual person. Increasing your facility’s capacity (operational) can be costly and undermine the hospital’s finances (financial).

By the year 2025, industry analysts predict the healthcare industry will undergo major shifts, including a noticeable gap in the number of available health care providers. A combination of more insured patients, an aging population, a rise in the number of veterans with medical issues, and a shortage of doctors pose challenges to an already stressed system. Advanced practice providers like nurse practitioners and physician assistants are vital to helping close the gap between patient demand and provider supply.

However, attracting skilled advanced practice providers is only half the battle. Retaining these skilled health care providers and integrating their roles into a hospital's daily functions is just as critical. These providers' roles also have to be integrated in a way that satisfies them and the doctors they work with. The following are crucial components to a successful integration between advanced practice providers and physicians in a hospital environment.