AUA 2011 - John Duckett Memorial Lecture: Urology in 2040 - what will it look like? - Session Highlights

WASHINGTON, DC USA (UroToday.com) - There is a potential shortage in the urology workforce.

 

There are roughly 9,500 Urologists in the US and one third of urologists today are over 55 years of age, and there are only 270 new urologists graduating per year.  With this in mind, the estimated shortage ranges from 9 to 32%. The physician workforce shortage stems from the mid 1990s when the Council on Graduate Medical Education proposed that there would be an excess of physicians in the future. The result was a reduction in the number of medical students, and the balanced budget act in 1997 prevented payment for additional residents. It is estimated that there is a need for 1,000 graduate medical education spots to keep up with the population growth. There has been an increase in the number of medical student spots with 118 medical schools increasing their medical student class numbers and in 2011 there were 30 new medical schools, 21 MD and 9 DO. But if the current situation persists, it is estimated that the gap in 2025 will be a deficit of 200,000 physicians.

 

 

Presented by Terry Hensle, MD at the American Urological Association (AUA) Annual Meeting - May 14 - 19, 2011 - Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington, DC USA


Reported for UroToday by Pamela I. Ellsworth, MD, Associate Professor Surgery (Urology), Alpert Medical School of Brown University.


 

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the UroToday.com Contributing Editor and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of the American Urological Association.


 

 



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