The U.S. could face a shortage of 37,800 to 124,000 physicians by 2034, according to data released by the Association of American Medical Colleges in June
Peter Nalin, MD, is co-interim regional campus dean of the University of Minnesota Medical School in Duluth. He joined Becker's ASC Review to discuss what's drawing students toward medicine and how more residency programs could be the key to slowing physician shortages.
Editor's note: This interview was edited lightly for clarity and brevity.
Question: How could the structure of medical education help mitigate physician shortages?
Dr. Peter Nalin: Every year across the country there are more candidates who are qualified than we have seats in medical schools. So first off, having more seats in medical schools, more positions and more admissions, could help clear part of the pathway to practicing doctors and physician scientists.
We already went through a major initiative through the American Association of Medical Colleges for a 30 percent increase in the medical school admission position. So either schools get bigger, or more schools were started. These actions were part of that solution. Next in the pathway would be more residency positions. The sponsoring institutions and hospitals, to some extent, have increased beyond the Medicare reimbursement caps of positions, but that steady number from the mid-'90s has grown not more than about 1 percent per year.
As the number of schools goes up, the size of the schools goes up and other positions increase, we need more residencies and more fellowships. The next expansion would be best to occur both at the medical education level and at the graduate medical education level. Then, that will lead to more physicians completing and licensing and being able to practice.
Q: What are the current draws to becoming a physician?
Dr. Nalin: The explosion in biomedical technology and the ability to make its impact on human suffering and disease more understood just keeps accelerating. Now, with computers, electronic records and sophisticated biotechnology becoming more and more accessible at the patient level, it's like technology is propelling medicine. Biotech is propelling medicine forward in ways that were sort of linear before, but now it's become exponential.
Also, we have more awareness of the social and developmental context of health and disease across societies and countries, so we're able to be more effective in making sure that the right remedies get to the right people who need it in a way that can actually make a difference for them. These two factors interest today's applicants very much, because they see the need, and they see how they can fulfill it through a career in medicine.
Additionally, I would say that medicine, because of its sophistication, is really very broad, so more and more people can imagine themselves in it in ways that just keep growing — whether that be practicing physicians, physician scientists, physicians in the military or physicians in rural areas. Medicine, healthcare and biotechnology are expanding exponentially, so we need to make sure we don't squeeze the supply of eligible people to pursue what is becoming a bigger part of our future in society and an increasing part of the overall economy.