Apr 26
2015
Healthcare Recruiting Trends Survey: Make Succession Plans Now to Avoid Physician Shortage
Health eCareers’ new 2015 Healthcare Recruiting Trends Survey found that the demand for healthcare services is predicted to swell over the next 10 years. Unfortunately, the supply of healthcare providers is unlikely to keep up with this increased demand, creating a shortage of qualified physicians – especially those in family medicine, psychiatry, internal medicine and a variety of other specialties.
Health eCareers offers tips for healthcare employers and recruiters to address the intense hiring challenges created by the gap between physician supply and demand.
Factors Creating Physician Shortage
Bryan Bassett, Managing Director of Health eCareers, says four demand-side factors are driving this shortage: millions of newly insured people entering the system due to the Affordable Care Act, aging baby boomers with increased medical needs, aging caregivers reaching retirement age and a stronger economy.
There are also lifestyle factors at play causing shortages in specific fields, such as primary care. “Although more students are actually entering medical schools and residency programs than a decade ago, today’s young physicians often choose to specialize rather than choosing primary care as a way of ensuring a better work-life balance than their predecessors,” says Bassett.
But there’s also good news for hospitals hoping to hire new doctors.
“In the past two years, we have seen more physicians who want to be employed by healthcare organizations rather than going into private practice,” explains Barkley Davis, Senior Director, Physician Recruitment at LifePoint Hospitals®, a public company with 70 hospitals in 22 states focused primarily in non-urban markets. “They’re looking for a stable environment that has financial backing and a lot of things already in place, such as a built-in practice, electronic records, billing and collections and minimal financial risk. It’s a security thing.”