Surgeons starting to disappear from rural areas

General surgeons "are the backbone of rural medicine, and all across the country they are starting to disappear," David Brown writes for The Washington Post. That means longer, more expenisve and in some cases more dangerous trips for specialized services, and it threatens the futire of some rural hospitals.

"Many young physicians are opting for non-surgical specialties, such as radiology or cardiology, in which they can earn as much money as a surgeon with less grueling and unpredictable hours," Brown explains. "Many young surgeons, in turn, choose to concentrate in fields such as transplant surgery or plastic surgery, in which they can make more money and don't have to face (usually alone) the wide range of problems a generalist faces."

The problem is getting worse and is not about to get better, because more than half of general surgeons in rural areas are over 50, "and a wave of retirements is expected in the coming decade," Brown writes. Surgeons are a key element in access to specialized health-care services, he notes: "Without general surgeons as backup, family practitioners can't deliver babies, emergency rooms can't take trauma cases, and most internists won't do complicated procedures such as colonoscopies." (Read more)