[hilac] Emailing: Half of U.S. Counties Have No Ob-Gyn Study (5-8-2012) womenshealth.gov.htm
- From: "Janice Caravalho" <janice.caravalho@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Donna Kekoa" <dkekoa@xxxxxxxx>, "Simon, Connie \(WH\)" <connie_simon@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "judy Personius" <jpersonius@xxxxxxxxx>, "Krista Olson" <kolson@xxxxxxxxx>, "Giraud, Kathi \(WH\)" <knewzie@xxxxxxxxx>, "Barbara Choy" <barbara.choy@xxxxxxxxx>, "Jasmine Kiernan" <jkiernan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "Vickie Crosby" <vickie4life@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, <hilac@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 17 May 2012 09:32:18 -1000
Half of U.S. Counties Have No Ob-Gyn: Study (5/8/2012) | womenshealth.govHi,
FYI - food for thought, as Hawaii Island faces these challenges.
aloha, Janice
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Submit Home > News > Health headlines > Half of U.S. Counties Have No Ob-Gyn:
Study
News
Half of U.S. Counties Have No Ob-Gyn: Study
But expert notes this may not always mean there is no access to care.
By Maureen Salamon
HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, May 8 (HealthDay News) -- Nearly half of the counties in the United
States lack a single obstetrician-gynecologist, a situation that may worsen as
medical school graduates gravitate toward metropolitan areas, a new study
indicates.
More than 9.5 million Americans live in areas without
obstetrician-gynecologists (ob-gyns); this scarcity is more prevalent in rural
pockets of the country, and particularly in the Midwest and South. However,
some experts feel the spotty distribution of these specialists -- who assist in
the births of 4 million babies each year and tend to the reproductive health of
millions of women -- isn't necessarily a problem.
"If there's not an obstetrician in one county, but there's one in the next
county, then it may not affect patient care at all," said Dr. Erin Tracy, an
ob-gyn at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, who was not involved in the
study. "It's a striking statistic . . . but I'm not sure how it affects actual
access to care."
The study, authored by University of New Mexico researcher Dr. William Rayburn,
is scheduled for presentation Tuesday at the American College of Obstetricians
and Gynecologists (ACOG) annual meeting in San Diego.
Rayburn and his colleagues gathered data from the 2010 U.S. County Census File
for adult and reproductive-age women and from the ACOG membership roster. They
found that about 33,300 ob-gyns were practicing in the United States in 2010,
representing 5 percent of a total of 661,400 physicians.
The average number of ob-gyns per 10,000 women dropped significantly from
counties with cities in them to those with smaller towns and rural areas.
Forty-nine percent of the country's 3,143 U.S. counties lacked a single ob-gyn,
the investigators found.
"You're going to get less of every [medical] specialty, the more rural you get.
That's going to be true across the board," explained Dr. Jill Rabin, chief of
ambulatory care, obstetrics and gynecology, and head of urogynecology at Long
Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park, N.Y.
"But generally you can find, within a reasonable driving distance, someone
using cutting-edge technology," Rabin added. "I can't tell you that's true in
every instance, but there are ob-gyns practicing in significant proportions in
small- or mid-size towns."
The study authors wrote that the uneven distribution of ob-gyns may worsen as
newly graduated medical residents cluster in metropolitan areas, and they
suggested that the government offer incentives to lure physicians to
underserved areas.
But Rabin noted that some government programs already exist to pay for medical
training for doctors who agree to serve in designated rural areas. Also, some
family practitioners in these areas deliver babies, "so they take up the slack
for us," she said.
The data and conclusions of research presented at medical meetings should be
viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
More information
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has more information about employment for
ob-gyns.
(SOURCES: Jill Rabin, M.D., chief, ambulatory care, obstetrics and gynecology,
and head, urogynecology, Long Island Jewish Medical Center, New Hyde Park,
N.Y.; Erin E. Tracy, M.D., M.P.H., obstetrician-gynecologist, Massachusetts
General Hospital, Boston; May 8, 2012, presentation, American College of
Obstetricians and Gynecologists annual meeting, San Diego)
Copyright © 2012 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
HealthDay news articles are derived from various sources and do not reflect
federal policy. Womenshealth.gov does not endorse opinions, products, or
services that may appear in news stories.
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