MDNews - Greater Kansas

Solving the Doctor Shortage and Medical School Bottleneck TENS OF THOUSANDS OF AMERICANS APPLY TO U.S. MEDICAL SCHOOLS E ACH YE AR. ONLY A FR ACTION GAIN ADMISSION. THE UNIVERSIT Y OF ARIZONA, FOR INSTANCE, POSTED A 1.9% ACCEPTANCE R ATE IN 2018. UCL A, FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSIT Y AND WAKE FOREST ACCEPTED FE WER THAN 3% OF APPLICANTS. BY RICHARD LIEBOWITZ, MD MANY U.S. MEDICAL schools are proud of their microscopic admission rates. But they have negative ramifications for the nation's healthcare system. T he Un it e d S t at e s w i l l ne e d up to 121,900 more physicians by 2032 to care for its aging population. U.S. medical schools aren't producing enough gradu- ates to meet that demand — and don't have the capacity to expand anywhere close to that degree. Internationa l medica l schools a re America's best hope for addressing its physi- cian workforce needs. They're a crucial alternative for the thousands of qualified students who find themselves on the wrong end of a med school admissions decision as a result of the mismatch between qualified applicants and available seats. A p p l y i n g t o m e d s c h o o l h a s b e c o m e a n u m b e r s g a m e . I n the 2018–2019 cycle, U.S. medical schools received more than 850,000 applications from nearly 53,000 students. The average student applies to 16 schools. Many students who would make terrific doctors fall through the cracks. In a prior interview with U.S. News & World Report, Robert Hasty, DO, the founding Dean and former Chief Academic Officer of the Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine, says, "We hear from high-quality applicants every day … and these are people with really high MCAT scores and GPAs, that this is their second year, third year or even fourth year applying to medical schools. And years ago, they would have gotten accepted the first time through, but the demand is just incredible." (Earlier this year Dr. Hasty became founding Dean and Chief Academic Officer for the proposed Kansas College of Osteopathic Medicine.) In other words, the status quo is failing thousands of qualified applicants and the U.S. healthcare system, which needs more doctors. U. S. medica l schools don't appea r capable of growing to address this problem. Enrollment is up only 7% over the past five years. That kind of modest growth won't get us anywhere close to narrowing our nation's projected shortage of physicians. Internationa l medica l schools ca n address these issues, providing opportunity to talented students and supplying the physicians America needs. Many international schools provide an education every bit as good as that offered by U.S. schools. For example, 96% of first-time test takers from St. George's University in Grenada — the school I lead — passed Step 1 of the U.S. Medical Licensing Exam in 2018. That's the same rate as graduates of U.S. medical schools. Research confirms that international schools produce high-caliber doctors. According to one study published by The BMJ, a leading medica l journa l, patients treated by doctors trained overseas had lower mortality rates than those treated by U.S.-educated doctors. Internationally trained doctors also practice where the U.S. healthcare system needs them most. In areas where per-capita income is below $15,000 annually, more than four in 10 doctors received their degrees abroad. American students are increasingly turning to international schools. More than 60% of licensed medical graduates of international schools in the Caribbean are U.S. citizens. Three-quarters of the medical students at St. George's are U.S. citizens. The odds of gaining admission to U.S. medical schools are growing longer. But bright young Americans don't have to give up their dreams of becoming doctors. They can turn to top-notch international medical schools. Their future patients will surely thank them. Richard Liebowitz, MD, is Vice Chancellor of St. George's University in Grenada, West Indies. He previously served as President of NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital. n M D N E W S . C O M /// M D N E W S G R E AT E R K A N S A S ■ 2 019/ 2 0 2 0 O P I N I O N & E D I T O R I A L ❰❰❰❰❰ 0 7

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