The projected shortage of primary care physicians in the United States is well documented, and current trends indicate that the numbers of graduates of U.S. medical schools may not be sufficient to fill these roles. FAIMER Research Scientist Marta van Zanten and FAIMER Associate Vice President for Research and Data Resources John R. Boulet quantify the contribution that graduates of Caribbean medical schools make to the U.S. primary care workforce in their recently published paper:
van Zanten M, Boulet JR. Medical education in the Caribbean: The contribution of Caribbean-educated physicians to the primary care workforce in the United States. Academic Medicine. 2013;88(2):276-81
Findings in the study indicate that graduates of Caribbean medical schools make an important contribution to the U.S. primary care workforce. Specifically, the authors used the American Medical Association Physician Masterfile and ECFMG data to determine the numbers of physicians providing direct patient care. They classified these physicians according to type of medical school from which they graduated, and then calculated frequencies and percentages of self-designated primary care specialties for each physician classification. Results of the study show that graduates of Caribbean medical schools had the highest proportion of physicians practicing primary care, followed by D.O., all other IMGs, and lastly, graduates of U.S. M.D.-granting schools.
