Leaders in the Iowa Medical Society say there’s an acute shortage of physicians in Iowa and now is the time to take steps to start attracting younger doctors to complete their training in the state.
Dr. Christina Taylor, president of the Iowa Medical Society’s board of directors, says there are about 5800 practicing physicians in Iowa today. “Down nearly 200 from last year,” she says. “Over 70 of our counties are considered health care deserts where there aren’t enough providers for patients to be seen and that’s getting worse.”
Iowa ranks 44th among the states in the number of physicians per capita. Dr. Taylor says making gains in that ranking won’t be easy because it takes a decade or longer to complete medical training.
“We have two excellent medical schools in the state, the University of Iowa and Des Moines University, but we don’t have enough residency positions. After they go to medical school, they need to get their speciality training and that’s done in residencies,” she says. “…The number one indicator of where someone will end up practing is where they did their training.”
Primary care physicians are nearly four times more likely to pick a job within the state where they completed a residency. Taylor says that’s why the Iowa Medical Society and other groups are focusing on efforts to increase residencies in Iowa hospitals, clinics and doctor’s offices.
“Encouraging people who are smart, young, brilliant people to become doctors,” she says, “and then stay in the state and practice here.”
Taylor, a specialist in internal medicine who lives in West Des Moines, says she’s a perfect example of a person who chose to stay in Iowa after getting a medical degree from the University of Iowa and completing her residency in Des Moines.
“You grow to not only like your community, but you appreciate your teachers and your fellow doctors where you do your residency,” Taylor says. “You know them, you like them, you know how they practice. It’s very comfortable and so it’s very understandable that people go into practice geographically close to where they trained.”
By 2030, Iowa is projected to be short about 1600 physicians and the Iowa Medical Society hosted a summit earlier this month to discuss the looming workforce shortage.