| A Shortage of Doctors Is Affecting Quality of Care Primary care physicians are at the forefront of managing chronic diseases are not meeting the needs of patients. Unfortunately, as the population grows older, providing comprehensive care and coordinated long-term care, and the demand for such care is growing. In an ideal world, primary care physicians would be focused on prevention -- avoiding the chronic diseases that then require costly management. The dilemma unfolding is unfortunate. The U.S. population is increasing and at the same time over 10,000 a day are turning 65 till 2029. By the year 2030, one fifth of Americans will be above the age of 65, with an increasing proportion above age 85. The population age 85 and over will increase 50% from 2000 to 2010. For Medicare patients, 83% of beneficiaries have one or more chronic conditions and 23% have five or more chronic conditions. Among nonelderly adults, the number who report having one or more of seven major chronic conditions has also increased dramatically. At the same time there has been a significant decline in the number of graduating medical students seeking a career in primary care. Part of physician frustration is with excessive administrative hassles dictated by Government and insurance carriers. Other factors include medical school tuition rates, high levels of indebtedness, declining pay, and excessive workloads. Consequently, many primary care physicians are choosing to retire early. There is a better way. States with higher ratios of primary care physicians to population have better health outcomes, including decreased mortality from cancer, heart disease, or stroke. Also, individuals living in states with a higher ratio of primary care physicians to population are more likely to report good health than those living in states with a lower ratio. An estimated 5 million admissions to U.S. hospitals, with a resulting cost of more than $26.5 billion, could be preventable with high-quality primary and preventive care treatment. And having more trained physicians helps. The supply of primary care physicians is also associated with an increase in life span. An increase of just one primary care physician is associated with 1.44 fewer premature deaths per 10,000. A primary care physician that has time to listen, make good medical decisions and teach us what we need to know is the key to good health care. Tell Me More about Concierge Physicians in Huntsville, Alabama. Exit |