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There is a shortage of Urologists in the United States. The US Department of Health projected in 2021 that there was a need for at least 14,400 Urologists. The American Urologic Association’s 2021 census shows that there were only 12,135 Urologists practicing actively which means they worked at least 25 hours per week. Only 38% of counties in the United States have at least one urologist. Urology is one of the oldest specialties with the median age being 55 years.
Many sources site the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 as the source for the workforce shortage in most surgical specialties. This limited the funding necessary to train residents and caps the number government subsidized residency positions. The shortage will be exacerbated by 2030 when the youngest members of the Baby Boomer generation will be in the Medicare age group. Medicare populations use urological services 3 times more than the general population. If we maintain the current urologist per capita ratio, there will be a shortage of urologists by 46% by 2035.
We are already seeing the effects of this shortage in access to Urologic care in Southwest Ohio. Patients are now waiting longer times to schedule appointments and surgeries. Patients are traveling farther for care. Urologists are experiencing a higher risk of burnout from these increased demands.
Dayton Physicians Network Urology recognized the oncoming shortage 7 years ago and we developed our Collaborative Care Model to address the growing urology needs of the community. This model has our nurse practitioners in the office seeing our established patients based on established guidelines of urologic care that we all follow. This collaborative relationship allows the urologist to see new patients and immediately address the needs of established patients that have acute critical needs. We started with one advanced practice nurse 7 years ago and over the years have expanded to 7 advanced practice nurses in the office. We have also extended this model to provide the necessary urology resources for patients admitted to Premier Miami Valley Hospital Downtown and Miami Valley South. We have 4 advanced practice nurses and a physicians assistant providing these services.
Our nurse practitioners and physician assistant are highly trained and well respected in the medical community. The advantage of the collaborative care model allows the physician and advanced practice provider to discuss the patients throughout the day. This can be in person conversation as well as electronic communication. We are now on Epic which allows us the opportunity to have access to medical records if a patient is seen by a provider on Epic. It also allows the urologists and advanced practice providers the ability to communicate in “real time” through out the day electronically.
Another way we are trying to improve access and communication with patients is to harness the power of MyChart with Epic. MyChart allows patients to communicate directly with the urologists and nurse practitioners in the office. Our expectation is that all patients will sign up
for MyChart to expedite message response times. Other MyChart advantages requesting an appointment, requesting medication refills and paying your bill online.
Thank you for choosing Dayton Physicians Network Urology for your care. We look forward to seeing you soon!