Severe Doctor Shortage by 2020 May Increase US Lifespan

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http://www.mercola.com/2005/mar/12/doctor_shortage.htm

 

 

 

 

Severe Doctor Shortage by 2020 May Increase US Lifespan

 

 

 

 

Doctor and Patient

 

Finding convenient, quality health care may soon be a frequent problem

among American citizens, as a severe shortage of available physicians

in the United States has been predicted. Several new studies explain

that with 79 million baby boomers reaching retirement age and

demanding more medical care, the shortage will worsen save the nation

starts producing more doctors.

 

In fact, unless action is taken soon, the nation will experience a

projected shortage of 85,000-200,000 doctors come 2020.

 

According to the studies, the country needs to train 3,000-10,000 more

physicians a year, which is up from the current 25,000, to meet the

growing medical needs of the nation. However, seeing as though it

takes 10 years to train a doctor, officials worry that is not enough

time to prevent a drought. Particularly scarce are old-fashioned

doctors, including:

 

* General surgeons

* Radiologists

* Anesthesiologists

 

Major Contrast From 1994 Overabundance Prediction

 

The shortage is an extreme turn around from earlier predictions: In

1994 the Journal of the American Medical Association predicted an

excess of 165,000 doctors by 2000, which is a far cry from current

statistics. America has about 800,000 active physicians, which is up

from 500,000 20 years ago; however, unless more medical students begin

their 10-year training soon, the supply will begin to diminish within

a decade, when doctors from the baby boomer generation retire in

massive quantities.

 

What's more, even the American Medical Association (AMA)--the

influential lobbying group for physicians--has deserted its

long-standing position that an " oversupply exists or is immediately

expected. " Because of this earlier predicted glut of doctors, the

United States stopped opening medical schools in the 1980s; it seems

such predictions were made in error and are resulting in a negative

effect on the country.

 

The Real Problem? Poor Distribution, Not Scarcity

 

Some medical policy specialists explain that the shortage scare of

doctors in the United States is not an issue concerning too few

doctors, but simply poor distribution of them. In fact, one critic

claimed the problem stems from:

 

*

 

More and more physicians taking care of fewer and fewer patients

*

 

Doctors gravitating to high-paying practices, such as sports

medicine and total body scans, that only serve the wealthy and

well-insured at the expense of Medicare patients and others

 

USA Today March 2, 2005

 

 

 

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

 

Last year I wrote an article on Why Death Rates Decrease When Doctors

Go on Strike. It might be hard to believe, but the facts speak quite

strongly.

 

Moreover, five years ago the Israel Medical Association went on strike

for two months to protest against their treasury's imposition of a new

four-year wage contract for physicians, which devastated Israel's

funeral industry, as there was a dramatic fall in the death rate. This

unplanned study is an amazing testimony as to the power of

conventional medicine to accelerate the death rate.

 

The majority of conventional medicine is focused on using drugs and

surgical band-aids rather than addressing the foundational causes of

disease. This focus has actually caused the conventional medical

paradigm to be the leading cause of death in the US. Wouldn't it be

amazing if we could combine the best of conventional medicine, which

is clearly the acute care emergency trauma medicine skills, with

natural medicine?

 

Naturopathic Medicine

 

It would be great to start to infuse some of the principles of

naturopathic medicine into conventional medicine. Naturopathic doctors

(N.D.s)--who have attended one of the five certified accredited

four-year naturopathic medical schools in North America--are fully

licensed as physicians in 14 states.

 

Naturopathic physicians diagnose disease and treat patients by using

natural modalities such as physical manipulation, clinical nutrition,

herbal medicine, homeopathy, counseling, acupuncture and hydrotherapy,

among others. This approach has proven successful in treating both

chronic and acute conditions.

 

Personal Steps Towards Health

 

Many of you may not be able to find a licensed ND in your area.

Therefore, an adjunct, or alternative, towards better health for you

and your family would be to implement the principles in my Total

Health Program. There are over 50,000 free pages on this Web site

 

Related Articles:

 

Why do Doctors Use Treatments That Don't Work?

 

America is Running Out of Doctors and Nurses

 

Death By Medicine, The Sequel

 

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