I read this article about the looming shortage of doctors that seems to get shoved aside in all of the health care discussions. Some of the “solutions” they offer are allowing medical professional licenses to be comprehensive (instead of licensing by individual states), expanding residency programs (allowing for a higher number of residents in the program) and reforming telemedicine programs that allow “remote” doctor visits.
Unfortunately, none of these addresses the core problem - medicine is just not that wonderful profession that used to attract the high school valedictorian. One reason is that government regulations have taken away a lot of the doctor’s autonomy and mandated a lot of procedures that make a doctor feel like the profession is “data entry” instead of patient care, according to a doctor I know. I remember that Charles Krauthammer said e-charting was great in theory and a nightmare in practice and I haven’t run into a doctor who didn’t agree.
Add to that the fact that there are too many areas talented young people can go into today that don’t require 4 years of college, 4 years of med school, internship, residency, possibly fellowship - maybe 10-12 years before you can start practicing the profession. Technology has opened up a lot of competitive careers - heck, I’ve heard of “youtube stars” and “influencers” who make 3x what a doctor makes. The other day, DD was telling me that the #1 topic of discussion among her friends is how long it takes to get in to see a doctor, and DS had to make an appointment for an annual visit 6 months in advance.
https://www.cato.org/blog/looming-doctor-shortage-demands-innovative-solutions
