Ambulatory training for primary care general internists: innovation with the affordable care act in mind.

BACKGROUND: Although primary care general internists (PCGIs) are essential to the physician workforce and the success of the Affordable Care Act, they are becoming an endangered species. OBJECTIVE: We describe an expanded program to educate PCGIs to meet the needs of a reformed health care system and detail the competencies PCGIs will need for their roles in team-based care. INTERVENTION: We recommended 5 initiatives to stabilize and expand the PCGI workforce: (1) caring for a defined patient population, (2) leading and serving as members of multidisciplinary health care teams, (3) participating in a medical neighborhood, (4) improving capacity for serving complex patients in group practices and accountable care organizations, and (5) finding an academic role for PCGIs, including clinical, population health, and health services research. A revamped approach to PCGI education based in teaching health centers formed by community health center and academic medical center partnerships would facilitate these curricular innovations. ANTICIPATED OUTCOMES: New approaches to primary care education would include multispecialty group practices facilitated by electronic consultation and clinical decision-support systems provided by the academic medical center partner. Multiprofessional and multidisciplinary education would prepare PCGI trainees with relevant skills for 21st century practice. The centers would also serve as sites for state and federal Medicaid graduate medical education (GME) expansion funding, making this funding more accountable to national health workforce priorities. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed innovative approach to PCGI training would provide an innovative educational environment, enhance general internist recruitment, provide team-based care for underserved patients, and ensure accountability of GME funds.

States Can Transform Their Health Care Workforce.

The United States faces the simultaneous challenges of improving health care access and balancing the specialty and geographic distribution of physicians. A 2014 Institute of Medicine report recommended significant changes in Medicare graduate medical education (GME) funding, to incentivize innovation and increase accountability for meeting national physician workforce needs. Annually, nearly $4 billion of Medicaid funds support GME, with limited accountability for outcomes. Directing these funds toward states' greatest health care workforce needs could address health care access and physician maldistribution issues and make the funding for resident education more accountable. Under the proposed approach, states would use Medicaid funds, in conjunction with Medicare GME funds, to expand existing GME programs and establish new primary care and specialty programs that focus on their population's unmet health care needs.

Emergency preparedness for residency/fellowship programs: lessons learned during Hurricane Katrina and applied during Hurricane Ike.

When it struck the US Gulf Coast in 2005, Hurricane Katrina severely disrupted many graduate medical education residency/fellowship programs in the region and the training of hundreds of residents/fellows. Despite the work of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education in responding to this natural disaster and facilitating communication and transfer of residents/fellows to other unaffected training programs, the storm exposed the gaps in the existing system. Subsequently, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, with the aid of its member organizations, including the American Medical Association, developed a new disaster recovery plan to allow for a more rapid, effective response to future catastrophic events. These policies were instrumental in the rapid relocation of 597 residents/fellows from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston after the landfall of Hurricane Ike in September 2008. As a further accommodation to affected trainees, medical certification boards should be as flexible as possible in waiving continuity requirements in the event of a disaster that affects residency/fellowship programs.

US residency training before and after the 1997 Balanced Budget Act.

CONTEXT: Graduate medical education (GME) determines the size and characteristics of the future workforce. The 1997 Balanced Budget Act (BBA) limited Medicare funding for additional trainees in GME. There has been concern that because Medicare is the primary source of GME funding, the BBA would discourage growth in GME. OBJECTIVE: To examine the number of residents in training before and after the BBA, as well as more recent changes in GME by specialty, sex, and type and location of education. DESIGN: Descriptive study using the American Medical Association/Association of American Medical Colleges National GME Census on physicians in Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited programs to examine changes in the number and characteristics of residents before and after the BBA. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Differences in the number of physicians in ACGME-accredited training programs overall, by specialty, and by location and type of education. RESULTS: The number of residents and fellows changed little between academic year (AY) 1997 (n = 98,143) and AY 2002 (n = 98,258) but increased to 106,012 in AY 2007, a net increase of 7869 (8.0%) over the decade. The annual number of new entrants into GME increased by 7.6%, primarily because of increasing international medical graduates (IMGs). United States medical school graduates (MDs) comprised 44.0% of the overall growth from 2002 to 2007, followed by IMGs (39.2%) and osteopathic school graduates (18.8%). United States MD growth largely resulted from selection of specialties with longer training periods. From 2002 to 2007, US MDs training in primary care specialties decreased by 2641, while IMGs increased by 3286. However, increasing subspecialization rates led to fewer physicians entering generalist careers. CONCLUSION: After the 1997 BBA, there appears to have been a temporary halt in the growth of physicians training in ACGME programs; however, the number increased from 2002 to 2007.

US graduate medical education, 2004-2005: trends in primary care specialties.

CONTEXT: Over the last decade, the primary care specialties have experienced an ebb and flow in popularity. A description of the future primary care workforce may inform planning for the health care needs of our population. OBJECTIVES: To describe characteristics of physicians training in primary care specialties over the past 9 years and to monitor trends in the characteristics of the entire residency population. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Descriptive survey study of the National GME Census, conducted by the American Medical Association and Association of American Medical Colleges, which jointly surveyed 8246 allopathic graduate medical education (GME) programs during the academic year 2004-2005 about active, transferred, and graduated residents, as well as about program characteristics. Program directors confirmed the status of 97.3% of active residents. The accompanying program survey was completed by 7163 (87%) of the program directors. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: General trends in the numbers and characteristics of all residents, fellows, and training programs, with specific trends for residents and fellows training in the primary care specialties and subspecialties over the past 9 years. RESULTS: The census counted 101 291 physicians-in-training during the 2004-2005 academic year, the largest number ever recorded by this survey. The number of osteopathic medical school graduates (DOs) in allopathic GME decreased from 5838 in 2003-2004 to 5675, following many years of annual increases. The number of residents in primary care specialties reached a peak in the mid 1990s. The number of family medicine residents who are graduates of US allopathic medical schools (USMDs) has fallen from 8232 (77.6%) in 1998-1999 to 4848 (51.7%) in 2004-2005. The number of primary care residents who are graduates of foreign medical schools and US citizens (USIMGs) nearly doubled between 1995-1996 (n = 1768) and 2004-2005 (n = 3304). The number of USIMGs training in internal medicine or pediatrics subspecialties increased by 45.7% between 1995-1996 (n = 622) and 2004-2005 (n = 906). The number of pediatric subspecialty fellows grew 55.7%, mostly because of the near doubling of USMDs, from 813 to 1617. More than half of primary care residents are women (52.5%). All primary care specialties and subspecialties experienced gains in the proportion of female residents, with the greatest in obstetrics/gynecology, which increased by 28.7% (57.9% in 1995-1996 vs 74.5% in 2004-2005). CONCLUSIONS: An increasing proportion of physicians are pursuing subspecialty training, while the number in primary care specialties has leveled off. Trends in GME suggest that the primary care medical workforce of the future will include more women, more IMGs, and more DOs.

Teaching residents and program directors about physician impairment.

OBJECTIVE: Residents are at a higher risk than the general population for the development of stress-related problems, depression, or suicide. The authors describe a curriculum for educating PGY-1s and residency program directors about physician impairment. METHODS: A resident wellness program was established with the goals of preventing resident suicide, encouraging acceptance of treatment where appropriate, preventing self-prescribing, and aiding in stress management. RESULTS: The curriculum was rated highly by residents in the areas of program content and usefulness. CONCLUSIONS: Residents are receptive to education on physician impairment. Institutional support is necessary for effectively addressing these concerns with trainees.

US graduate medical education, 2003-2004.

CONTEXT: Information about recent graduates of medical schools and the characteristics of physicians training in graduate medical education (GME) portends the size and composition of the US physician workforce of the near future. OBJECTIVES: To examine trends in training programs and career choices of graduating male and female residents and to monitor trends in the size of the entire residency population. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The American Medical Association and Association of American Medical Colleges jointly surveyed residency programs during the academic year 2003-2004 about active, transferred, and graduated residents, as well as about program characteristics. The 8192 programs confirmed the status of 94.6% of residents. Nearly 86% of program directors (n = 7040) completed the accompanying program survey. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Overall trends during the last 6 years in the number and characteristics of residents and programs, as well as the specialty of male and female graduating residents. RESULTS: There were 99,964 active residents during the 2003-2004 academic year, the highest ever recorded by the National GME Census. The number of residents (n = 22,444) entering US graduate medical education programs for the first time is also the highest on record. In 1999, 28,773 physicians completed training, 10,546 (36.7%) of whom were women. In 2003, there were 29,745 graduates, 11,681 (39.3%) of whom were women, representing a 10.8% increase. The number of obstetrics/gynecology male graduates decreased 31.3%, while female graduates increased 18.2%. Other specialties that lost men and gained women were dermatology, family medicine, internal medicine, ophthalmology, pathology, psychiatry, and general surgery. The proportion of graduates who pursued additional training increased; percentages were 27.2% in 1999, 29.6% in 2001, and 32.1% in 2003. In 2000, 35.7% of programs provided opportunities to develop cultural competence; the percentage in 2003 was 50.7%. The percentage of programs with complementary/alternative medicine curriculum has held steady at 24%. CONCLUSIONS: The number of physicians in GME is at its highest, and nearly one third of physicians completing training in one program continue on in another. The choices of female residents parallel those of male residents in many respects, but there are important differences.

US graduate medical education, 2002-2003.

CONTEXT: By selecting a specialty to train in, physicians entering graduate medical education (GME) training provide advance information about the future physician workforce. OBJECTIVE: To determine trends in the residency choices of medical school graduates entering GME training. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The American Medical Association and Association of American Medical Colleges jointly surveyed active programs as well as combined programs in academic year 2002-2003 about active, transferred, and graduated residents. In 2002 the survey was sent to 8064 program directors; 84.2% of them confirmed the status of all active residents and 82.6% completed the program survey. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: In addition to overall trends, the specialty choices of graduates of osteopathic schools (DOs) and international medical graduates (IMGs). Also, where native US citizen resident physicians attended medical school if not in the United States, with a focus on Hispanic ethnicity and Spanish-language facility. RESULTS: The census counted 98 258 resident physicians in GME programs in academic year 2002-2003, similar to 5 years ago and reversing a decline over the past few years. There were 23 443 residents in graduate year 1 (GY1) positions, for which prior GME training is not required, a slight increase from 2001-2002. The proportion of GY1 residents without prior GME increased slightly compared with 2001-2002 (92.3% to 93.3%). In 1996-1997, 624 DOs were GY1 residents without prior GME (2.9%); their numbers increased to 1312 (6.0%) in 2002-2003. The number of IMGs in GY1 positions without prior GME also increased over this period, from 5033 (23.5%) to 5623 (25.7%). Over the past 6 years the number of IMG and DO GY1 residents without prior GME in specialties such as general surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, and emergency medicine has increased disproportionately faster than the overall rate. Hispanic native US citizens are more likely to be IMGs than non-Hispanic native US citizens (9.6% vs 5.0%). One third of Hispanic native US citizen IMGs received their medical education in Spanish vs less than 3% of non-Hispanic native US citizen IMGs. CONCLUSIONS: Nearly 25% of physicians in US allopathic training programs in 2002-2003 were IMGs, and the percentage of DOs continues to increase. The number of residents conversant in Spanish could serve a need for a large US minority population.