By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    medicare part d benefits
    Everything that You Need to Know About Medicare Part D
    August 15, 2022
    Best Ways to Boost Your Immune System this Winter
    Best Ways to Boost Your Immune System this Winter
    November 15, 2022
    back pain issues
    Ways to Treat Constant Back Pain
    August 21, 2023
    Latest News
    How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
    July 17, 2025
    Beyond Nutrition: Everyday Foods That Support Whole-Body Health
    June 15, 2025
    The Wide-Ranging Benefits of Magnesium Supplements
    June 11, 2025
    The Best Home Remedies for Migraines
    June 5, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    More On Wellness Programs To Improve Health and Reduce Costs
    January 25, 2012
    Privatizing Social Security and Medicare: Who Can Defuse Political Dynamite?
    June 12, 2011
    Study: Risk of Death in Elderly Patients with Dementia Doubled with Some Antipsychotic Medications
    February 26, 2012
    Latest News
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
    How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
    July 17, 2025
    How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
    July 17, 2025
    Let Your Lawyer Handle the Work Before You Pay Medical Costs
    July 6, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Questions About How We Train Primary Care Doctors
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Medical Education > Questions About How We Train Primary Care Doctors
Medical Education

Questions About How We Train Primary Care Doctors

rdowney14
rdowney14
Share
3 Min Read
Image
SHARE

D

Image

Depending on who is talking we either have a shortage of primary care physicians or we don’t.

D

More Read

Image
How Patients Can Receive Financial Assistance For Medication
Who or What Is Det Norske Veritas?
Changing Behavior Through Patient Stories in Telluride
Primary Care Workforce Shortage: Possible Solutions
Giving Interns More Sleep is Not Making Hospitals Safer

Image

Depending on who is talking we either have a shortage of primary care physicians or we don’t.

It’s hard to make a case for no shortage when you go to places like Prescott, Arizona.  Primary care practices there are full.  New residents often have to make the 80 mile trip to Phoenix to find a “medical home.”  Those who maintain there is no shortage usually fall back on the argument that we have a ”maldistribution of physicians,” which suggests that someone needs to tell many of them to move to rural, underserved areas if they want to practice.  ”After you,” they would say.

I am beginning to wonder, though, about the training we provide new med school graduates and how that factors into the equation.  I just finished reading an excellent article by Dr. Susan Okie in the New England Journal of Medicine, titled “The Evolving Primary Care Physician.”  The part that intrigued me involves “Reforms in Education.”  Dr. Okie relates a story that George Thibault, president of the Macy Foundation, told her.  Thibault who was once a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, says a primary care resident confessed she wasn’t going to be “comfortable” with an outpatient practice after her training at Massachusetts General Hospital.  In her mind, she was deficient in the proper skill set for providing ambulatory care.  If residents never leave the ICU, Dr. Okie quotes Thibault as saying, “They’re never going to have a comfort level to even imagine [working in a community setting],” let alone a rural setting.

Put yourself in this resident’s shoes.  She is finishing one or two years of a primary care residency and doesn’t feel comfortable with being a primary care provider.  What does she do now?  As Thibault notes, training should match what a student’s career pathway much earlier, or they’ll end up in a similar fix – unhappy and uncomfortable in a primary care setting.  I hope she is more the exception than the rule because my belief is that a person’s happiness revolves around the reason to get up every morning.  Thinking positively, perhaps once she starts seeing patients, she will resolve some of that discomfort.  But we don’t know that, and neither does she.

TAGGED:primary care physicians
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
Global Healthcare Policy & Law
July 17, 2025
paramedics in surgical gloves and masks
How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
Health care
July 16, 2025
a woman giving a key
How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
Health
July 16, 2025
a woman with kinesio tapes on her back arm
How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
Health care
July 16, 2025

You Might also Like

How That New Drug Goes From Idea to Market

April 16, 2016
career in medical field
CareerMedical Education

Can Online Degrees Launch Your Career in Top Medical Fields?

June 18, 2024

The Hidden Dangers of Working as a Health Care Professional

May 5, 2016
Medical Education

Better Bedside Manners Heal Doctor-Patient Relationships

July 30, 2012
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?