Tuesday, April 28, 2009
NURSING GREEN CARD BLACK OUT EXACERBATES NATION'S RN SHORTAGE
Monday, April 27, 2009
TIMES: DOCTOR SHORTAGE THREATENS OBAMA'S HEALTH CARE REFORM PLANS
Universal health care does not just mean that every American has health insurance. It also means that they have access to doctors and nurses. And right now there are dire shortages in both fields. I've posted many articles here on the nurse and physician shortages in the past. Today's front page of the New York Times has a story describing the White House's worry that the physician shortage (which could reach more than 150,000 by the end of the next decade) could hamper efforts to extend health care to all Americans.This is potentially the highest profile story on the physician shortage yet.
Senator Conrad's S.628, a bill introduced last month, would do a great deal to help get doctors to the worst medically underserved areas. Hopefully, legislators will remember that RN and MD visas are a health care issue as much as an immigration one.
# posted by Greg Siskind @ 6:58 AM
Sunday, April 26, 2009
NEED FOR NURSING IMMIGRATION BILL GROWS MORE ACUTE
The (Nashville) Tennessean newspaper
reports on a nursing shortage that is growing more acute even with rising general unemployment. That reality is prompting members of Congress to re-introduce nursing immigration legislation to end a blackout on nursing immigration that has gone on for more than two years.
# posted by Greg Siskind @ 3:11 PM
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
NUMBER OF RESIDENCY SLOT MATCHES INCREASING
ECFMG
is reporting that for the seventh consecutive year, the number of residency positions offered through the national Match has increased. For the PGY-1 class starting in July 2009, the number was 22,427, an increase of 187 from 2008 and an increase of nearly 2,000 since 2002. Nearly 100 new international medical graduates were offered PGY-1 positions in the match over 2008. 3,112 non-US citizen international medical graduates obtained slots, a 4% increase over 2008. Note that many doctors get in to residency programs outside of the match and the 3,112 is not the total number of foreign physicians who will be entering. In fact, an additional 2,000+ doctors may come in outside of the Match this year.
# posted by Greg Siskind @ 7:17 AM
Monday, April 6, 2009
NEW IMMIGRANTS POSE CHALLENGE FOR HOSPITALS
The New York Times has been writing an excellent series over the last few weeks examining various aspects of the immigration debate. Here
is one by Denise Grady on the array of issues arising at a Minneapolis hospital. Grady also wrote
this companion article.
# posted by Greg Siskind @ 7:59 AM
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