Postgraduate Medicine
ISSN: 0032-5481 (Print) 1941-9260 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ipgm20
How Many is too Many? Allan J. Ryan To cite this article: Allan J. Ryan (1979) How Many is too Many?, Postgraduate Medicine, 66:2, 18-19, DOI: 10.1080/00325481.1979.11715212 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00325481.1979.11715212
Published online: 07 Jul 2016.
Submit your article to this journal
View related articles
Citing articles: 1 View citing articles
Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=ipgm20 Download by: [Australian Catholic University]
Date: 13 August 2017, At: 04:59
EDITORIAL
POSTGRADUATE MEDICINE
8/79
HOW MANY IS TOO MANY? Downloaded by [Australian Catholic University] at 04:59 13 August 2017
Allan J. Ryan, MD
In a recent essay in the New England Journal of Medicine (300: 1047-1049, 1979) Donald B. Louria, MD, has addressed the question of the impending oversupply of physicians in the United States. He
'
:
i''1
:1
18
points out that "Between 1960 and 1990, the American population is expected to grow by 35 per cent, whereas the medical-school output should increase by 152 per cent." Every physician is, or should be, familiar with the fact that the great increase in our ratio of physicians to
population (from 1:735 in 1950 to an estimated 1:500 in 1980) is due to two factors: ( 1) an increase in the number of medical schools and size of classes and (2) a heavy influx of foreign medical graduates (FMGs). Two of Louria's five recommendations for controlling the available supply of physicians make good sense, but the other three are împractical, unwise, and even contradictory. In regard to his first suggestion, it is logical to reduce class size in US medical schools, even though the demands for admission continue to exceed by far the number of available places-in spite of the tremendously high cost to the individual aspirant. Interestingly, the federal government has indicated that it would look favorably on modest class-size reductions even though it mandated increases in exchange for capitation grants only a few years ago. Also of interest is the fact that neither faculty nor supporting facilities to accommodate these increases have grown proportionately in most cases. As for another of Louria's suggestions, it is reasonable to discuss the possibility of coming to an agreement on what might be an appropriate ratio of physicians to population for the United States in the future. There should be sorne way to determine a figure that would recognize the increase in the average age of our population, the potential for Cl· continued
VOL 66/NO 2/AUGUST 1979/POSTGRADUATE MEDICINE
Downloaded by [Australian Catholic University] at 04:59 13 August 2017
FEDAHIST® INDICATIONS: Fedahist is indicated for the symptomatic relief of seasonal and perennial allergie rhinitis, vasomotor rhinitis, and eustachian tube congestion. CONTRAINDICATIONS:Sensitivitytoantihistamines or sympathomimetic agents. Severe hypertension and coronary artery disease. WARNINGS: Patients should be cautioned as ta the possible additive effects with aleahal and other central nervous system depressants such as tranquilizers, sedatives, and hypnotics. Patients should be warned against hazardous occupations requiring complete mental alertness, such as operat~ machinery or driving a motor vehicle. PRECAUTIONS: Fedahist should be used with caution in patients with hypertension, coronary artery disease or any other cardiovascular disorder, prostatic hypertrophy, hyperthyroidism, glaucoma, or diabetes. The effect of pseudoephedrine may be potentiated by monoamine oxidase inhibitors. Sympathomimetics may antagonize antihypertensives, such as methyldopa, reserpine, veratrum alkaloids,andmecamylamine. ADVERSE REACTIONS: The following adverse reactions have been associated with antihistamines and sympathomimetics: Abdominal cramps, angina, anorexia, anxiety, blood pressure elevation, CNS stimulation, circulatory collapse, confusion, dizziness, drowsiness, drug rash, dysuria due ta vesicle sphincter spasm, gastric distress, headaché, insomnia, mydriasis, nausea, palpitation, restlessness, sweating, tachycardia, tension, vertigo, vomiting, weakness. Sympathomimetics may also produce central nervous stimulation with convulsions or cardiovascular collapse with accompanying hypotension. USE IN PREGNANCY: The safety of the use of Fedahist in pregnancy has not been established. FEDAHIS'J'® FEDAHIS'f® Tablets -Each tablet contains: Chlorpheniramine Maleate 4 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl 60 mg DOSAGE: Adults and children 12 years and older: one ta blet every 4 hours. FEDAHIS'J'® Syrup -Each 5 ml contains: Chlorpheniramine Maleate 2 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl 30 mg DOSAGE: Adults and children 12 years and older: two teaspoonfuls every 4 hours, not to exœed 6 doses in 24 hours. FEDAHIS'J'® Expectorant -Each 5 ml contains: Chlorpheniramine Maleate 2 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl 30 mg Guaifenesin 100 mg DOSAGE: Adults and children 12 years and older: Two teaspoonfuls every 4 hours, not to exceed 6 doses in 24 hours.
EDITORIAL CONTINUED
using physician extenders, and advances in medical technology. The new figure may never find favor with physicians, or with anyone else for that matter, but the ratio we have now does not make rouch sense either. lt does not follow, however, as Louria further suggests, that it would be possible to establish limits on the number of Americans trained in foreign medical schools who could be licensed. There is no way to force registration of such students or legally to limit the number of returning graduates who could be licensed each year. The fiasco that resulted from the attempt to force our medical schools to admit a certain number of foreign medical students of US origin to advanced standing should be proof enough of that. Sorne schools are admitting more of these students, but on the schools' own terms. It makes even less sense to talk about encouraging more residency training of FMGs, as Louria advocates. These physicians are currently required to return to the country of their origin, but a high percentage do not do so. Special legislation and other legal maneuvers make it possible for them to stay. Laws and regulations are regularly circumvented to allow many FMGs to return to the United States after a brief visit to their homeland. This is winked at, if not actively encouraged, by the administrators of medical schools and hospitals anxious to
till their more than 60,000 residency positions. The principal justifications for a sizable number of residency programs in both teaching and nonteaching hospitals are the desire for prestige and the ability to attract grant support, rather than a proven need for more graduates trained in sorne of the various specialties. Louria's least palatable recommendation, summarized simply in the words "no further increase in osteopathy students should be permitted," without any further expianation, is a calculated insult to the community of osteopathie physicians who have worked so hard in the past two decades to advance the standards of training in their field and to support better education and research, in their new schools and elsewhere, for and by members of their profession. The steps that can and should be taken immediately to stabilize the ratio, as unpopular with sorne parties as they may be, are the reduction in size of medical school classes and the phasing out of a substantial number of residency training programs.
DOON ER LABDRATDRIES, INC. Subsidiary of
Wilfiam H. Rorer, lnc. Fort washington, PA 19034
VOL 66/NO 2/AUGUST 1979/POSTGRADUATE MEDICINE
ISSN: 0032-5481 (Print) 1941-9260 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ipgm20
How Many is too Many? Allan J. Ryan To cite this article: Allan J. Ryan (1979) How Many is too Many?, Postgraduate Medicine, 66:2, 18-19, DOI: 10.1080/00325481.1979.11715212 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00325481.1979.11715212
Published online: 07 Jul 2016.
Submit your article to this journal
View related articles
Citing articles: 1 View citing articles
Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=ipgm20 Download by: [Australian Catholic University]
Date: 13 August 2017, At: 04:59
EDITORIAL
POSTGRADUATE MEDICINE
8/79
HOW MANY IS TOO MANY? Downloaded by [Australian Catholic University] at 04:59 13 August 2017
Allan J. Ryan, MD
In a recent essay in the New England Journal of Medicine (300: 1047-1049, 1979) Donald B. Louria, MD, has addressed the question of the impending oversupply of physicians in the United States. He
'
:
i''1
:1
18
points out that "Between 1960 and 1990, the American population is expected to grow by 35 per cent, whereas the medical-school output should increase by 152 per cent." Every physician is, or should be, familiar with the fact that the great increase in our ratio of physicians to
population (from 1:735 in 1950 to an estimated 1:500 in 1980) is due to two factors: ( 1) an increase in the number of medical schools and size of classes and (2) a heavy influx of foreign medical graduates (FMGs). Two of Louria's five recommendations for controlling the available supply of physicians make good sense, but the other three are împractical, unwise, and even contradictory. In regard to his first suggestion, it is logical to reduce class size in US medical schools, even though the demands for admission continue to exceed by far the number of available places-in spite of the tremendously high cost to the individual aspirant. Interestingly, the federal government has indicated that it would look favorably on modest class-size reductions even though it mandated increases in exchange for capitation grants only a few years ago. Also of interest is the fact that neither faculty nor supporting facilities to accommodate these increases have grown proportionately in most cases. As for another of Louria's suggestions, it is reasonable to discuss the possibility of coming to an agreement on what might be an appropriate ratio of physicians to population for the United States in the future. There should be sorne way to determine a figure that would recognize the increase in the average age of our population, the potential for Cl· continued
VOL 66/NO 2/AUGUST 1979/POSTGRADUATE MEDICINE
Downloaded by [Australian Catholic University] at 04:59 13 August 2017
FEDAHIST® INDICATIONS: Fedahist is indicated for the symptomatic relief of seasonal and perennial allergie rhinitis, vasomotor rhinitis, and eustachian tube congestion. CONTRAINDICATIONS:Sensitivitytoantihistamines or sympathomimetic agents. Severe hypertension and coronary artery disease. WARNINGS: Patients should be cautioned as ta the possible additive effects with aleahal and other central nervous system depressants such as tranquilizers, sedatives, and hypnotics. Patients should be warned against hazardous occupations requiring complete mental alertness, such as operat~ machinery or driving a motor vehicle. PRECAUTIONS: Fedahist should be used with caution in patients with hypertension, coronary artery disease or any other cardiovascular disorder, prostatic hypertrophy, hyperthyroidism, glaucoma, or diabetes. The effect of pseudoephedrine may be potentiated by monoamine oxidase inhibitors. Sympathomimetics may antagonize antihypertensives, such as methyldopa, reserpine, veratrum alkaloids,andmecamylamine. ADVERSE REACTIONS: The following adverse reactions have been associated with antihistamines and sympathomimetics: Abdominal cramps, angina, anorexia, anxiety, blood pressure elevation, CNS stimulation, circulatory collapse, confusion, dizziness, drowsiness, drug rash, dysuria due ta vesicle sphincter spasm, gastric distress, headaché, insomnia, mydriasis, nausea, palpitation, restlessness, sweating, tachycardia, tension, vertigo, vomiting, weakness. Sympathomimetics may also produce central nervous stimulation with convulsions or cardiovascular collapse with accompanying hypotension. USE IN PREGNANCY: The safety of the use of Fedahist in pregnancy has not been established. FEDAHIS'J'® FEDAHIS'f® Tablets -Each tablet contains: Chlorpheniramine Maleate 4 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl 60 mg DOSAGE: Adults and children 12 years and older: one ta blet every 4 hours. FEDAHIS'J'® Syrup -Each 5 ml contains: Chlorpheniramine Maleate 2 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl 30 mg DOSAGE: Adults and children 12 years and older: two teaspoonfuls every 4 hours, not to exœed 6 doses in 24 hours. FEDAHIS'J'® Expectorant -Each 5 ml contains: Chlorpheniramine Maleate 2 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl 30 mg Guaifenesin 100 mg DOSAGE: Adults and children 12 years and older: Two teaspoonfuls every 4 hours, not to exceed 6 doses in 24 hours.
EDITORIAL CONTINUED
using physician extenders, and advances in medical technology. The new figure may never find favor with physicians, or with anyone else for that matter, but the ratio we have now does not make rouch sense either. lt does not follow, however, as Louria further suggests, that it would be possible to establish limits on the number of Americans trained in foreign medical schools who could be licensed. There is no way to force registration of such students or legally to limit the number of returning graduates who could be licensed each year. The fiasco that resulted from the attempt to force our medical schools to admit a certain number of foreign medical students of US origin to advanced standing should be proof enough of that. Sorne schools are admitting more of these students, but on the schools' own terms. It makes even less sense to talk about encouraging more residency training of FMGs, as Louria advocates. These physicians are currently required to return to the country of their origin, but a high percentage do not do so. Special legislation and other legal maneuvers make it possible for them to stay. Laws and regulations are regularly circumvented to allow many FMGs to return to the United States after a brief visit to their homeland. This is winked at, if not actively encouraged, by the administrators of medical schools and hospitals anxious to
till their more than 60,000 residency positions. The principal justifications for a sizable number of residency programs in both teaching and nonteaching hospitals are the desire for prestige and the ability to attract grant support, rather than a proven need for more graduates trained in sorne of the various specialties. Louria's least palatable recommendation, summarized simply in the words "no further increase in osteopathy students should be permitted," without any further expianation, is a calculated insult to the community of osteopathie physicians who have worked so hard in the past two decades to advance the standards of training in their field and to support better education and research, in their new schools and elsewhere, for and by members of their profession. The steps that can and should be taken immediately to stabilize the ratio, as unpopular with sorne parties as they may be, are the reduction in size of medical school classes and the phasing out of a substantial number of residency training programs.
DOON ER LABDRATDRIES, INC. Subsidiary of
Wilfiam H. Rorer, lnc. Fort washington, PA 19034
VOL 66/NO 2/AUGUST 1979/POSTGRADUATE MEDICINE
