International Medical Graduates and the Physician Workforce

Journal of the American Medical Association (07/15/24) McElvaney, Oliver J.; McMahon, Graham T.

Systematic policy changes at the national level are needed to help international medical graduates (IMGs) fill the U.S. physician supply gap, according to experts. Oliver J. McElvaney, of the University of Washington, Seattle, Department of Medicine, and Graham T. McMahon, of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education and the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, discuss the challenges that IMGs face to entry in the United States. These barriers include the immigration process, the pathways available for certification and licensing, and some institutions' reluctance to consider candidates not trained in this country. Additional obstacles once in the United States include barriers to board eligibility, research funding, and career progress. "International medical graduates offer a viable and available solution to bridge the domestic physician supply gap, while improving workforce diversity and meaningfully addressing the public health implications of geographic maldistribution of general and specialist physicians, without disrupting existing physician stature and salaries," the authors conclude.

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