Pathologists Shortage in United States of America (USA) - How Academic Centers and Private Laboratories Can Play an Effective Role in Recruiting Qualified Future Pathology Residents from Pool of United States (US) and International Medical Graduates (IMGs)

Abstract

Abstract Introduction/Objective Pathology training (PT) in the US requires 4 years of AP/CP training. Only 2% of any medical school class (US or IMGs) enter Pathology. However, among practicing pathologists, an estimated 20 to 30% are IMGs that are working in academia/private settings. Even with artificial intelligence (AI) and digital pathology (DP), the need for pathologists will continue to rise, especially those who will acquire AI and DP skills. Methods/Case Report Our facility is a private reference laboratory. About 60 to 70% of graduates after residency join private practices. We initiated an education model to offer internship opportunities mainly for IMGs who have difficulty in gaining access to US academic centers due to numerous obstacles. Our initiative also offered electives for US medical students (US-MS) exploring pathology as a career. Between 2016 and 2022, 72 IMGs (12 countries) and 18 MS (5 states) rotated with us in a structured rotation lasting 4 weeks. Results (if a Case Study enter NA) Most of our IMGs were not able to find access to academic centers for internship. From the pool of IMGs who rotated with us, 51/72 (70%) matched into PT. In addition, we were able to positively influence 16/18 (88%) US-MS to adopt pathology as a career. Conclusion 1) We successfully created an educational model in a non-academic setting to mentor and prepare access to academic centers through PT as aspiring pathologists, 2) IMGs in our program excel in their respective countries; they were interviewed before being accepted into our program and committed to pathology with higher chance of matching, 3) US-MS that rotated through our program have higher rate of adopting pathology as a career when compared to traditional academic pathology rotations, and 4) more academic centers should consider allowing internships to IMGs and initiate private collaborations as an integral part of supporting the future of our profession.