IU School of Medicine expects physician shortage

Enrollment at the IU School of Medicine will have to increase 30 percent to meet the state's future health-care demands, requiring a boost of enrollment, especially in first-year students, which currently is at 280, school officials said.\nA task force created by the Indianapolis-based School of Medicine reported in mid-December that while the state's physician population will increase, Indiana may still fall short of demand by nearly 2,000 doctors in 2015, leaving an increasingly aging population with inadequate access to health care. An increase in enrollment by 14 students is expected for next year, which could meet Indiana's medical needs if the enrollment number would stay at that level, said Stephen Leapman, executive associate dean for educational affairs and a member of the task force.\nThe School of Medicine has the second highest medical-school enrollment in the nation, behind the University of Illinois. But, Leapman said, increases in enrollment don't address where physicians will work after their training is complete, which contributes to the task force's concern for Indiana's future in health care.\nRural areas are anticipated to particularly suffer from a lack of medical doctors, especially those in primary care, which includes family medicine, pediatrics, internal medicine and obstetrics. Leapman said this is probably because physicians don't necessarily want to raise families in areas that may fail to fulfill the lifestyle they seek, such as having access to theater or opera.\nAccording to an IU School of Medicine press release, the task force said the school must request more funding from the Indiana General Assembly in providing incentives for doctors to work in rural areas. More residency positions must also become available so doctors trained in Indiana can complete their education and be more likely to practice in Indiana.\n"(The) state legislature has to think it's important, or we have to put in on the backs of someone else," Leapman said, "and students are already paying inordinate amounts for tuition."\nThis recommendation for enrollment boost parallels other current health-care deficits in the state. More than 60 of Indiana's 92 counties are designated as medically under-served areas, Leapman said.\n"That's going to get acutely worse as we look into this new demand," he said.\nJohn Lee, director of professional relations at Bloomington Hospital, said he periodically hears complaints that people have a hard time getting in to see primary-care physicians in Monroe County. But, he said, Bloomington does well compared to rural areas in recruiting both primary-care and specialty doctors like neurologists because of the amenities of Bloomington, including the University.\nLeapman used simple economics in explaining the reasons some counties face shortages: greater demand than supply.\nWith more baby boomers reaching 65 and older, Leapman said their health needs will be more significant. Meanwhile, physicians tend to work fewer hours than in the past, Leapman said, and more women are entering the medical field and tend to leave the workforce earlier and work fewer hours than men because of time taken for families.