Shortage Of Medical Practitioners Research Articles

Digital Health Research Priorities

The present-day digital health grew out of telemedicine developed for the provision of health services to patients in remote locations (e.g., seafarers, astronauts). The great potential of the digital and remote services was soon noticed, and technological developments followed, accelerating rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The easing of the pandemic is a moment for a reassessment and an interdisciplinary reflection on the progress in digital health. Several researchers addressed the barriers and facilitators for the adoption of digital health solutions. The research on AI developments in the processing of big clinical databases is featured in numerous scientific publications. However, the big data approach may have de-emphasised the research on individual care paths of patients. Therefore, it seems a priority to refocus again on patients’ individual paths and outcomes. This may entail more interdisciplinary research on the legal aspects of data privacy protection The telehealth services changed the degree of social presence in patient-provider interactions, and thus affected the social contract which was the pillar of therapeutic encounters. Many researchers are pointing in the direction of patient satisfaction as a key factor affecting the adoption of digital solutions [1]. Hence the next priority is the research on digital solutions and care management procedures that would improve patients’ acceptance and satisfaction. Considering the shortage of medical practitioners, also more research is needed on the integrated care systems and the involvement of more groups of medical and care specialists. The key groups of stakeholders’ shaping the landscape of digital health are venture capitalists, digital health companies, payers, and health care system providers or leaders. Their priorities and goals need to be aligned for the digital transformation to become fully adopted in health care systems [2]. The cross-sectional research involving various groups of stakeholders in digital health is yet another priority.

Expectations and experiences of final-year medical students regarding family medicine rural rotations: Influence on intention to practise in a rural setting

Background. During recent years, a shortage of medical practitioners has been reported in rural underserved areas of South Africa (SA). The Division of Family Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town (UCT), SA, implemented a voluntary 4-week rural rotation in Vredenburg, West Coast District, in 2011 in response to the need for rural training to be included in the medical curriculum. The reason for the decline in the number of students making use of this opportunity, is unknown; therefore, a compulsory 1-week rural rotation, as part of the final-year 4-week clerkship, was implemented in 2015. The rationale for this intervention was to ensure a sustainable rural learning environment and to highlight the need to explore students’ expectations and experiences with regard to the rural rotation. Objectives. To explore the expectations and experiences of 6th-year medical students regarding the family medicine rural rotation, and to identify factors that may influence return to a rural setting after graduation. Methods. A qualitative study design was used. Sixth-year medical students ( n =31) participated in the pre-rural focus group discussions (FGDs), and 28 in the post-rural FDGs. A content analysis method was used to identify key themes. Results. Key themes for student expectations included programme content, clinical experiences, language barriers and physical environment. Themes for student experiences related to environment and resources, programme content and clinical experience, language barriers and logistics. Positive experiences included good mentorship, autonomy to perform procedures and improved preparedness for internship. Negative experiences included inadequate clinical exposure and time allocation. Most students expressed an intention to enter rural practice; reasons included effective teamwork and making a difference. Conclusions. Student expectations of the rural rotation varied from feelings of apprehension about language barriers to programme content and clinical experience. However, the majority were excited about the potential clinical exposure in a rural setting. Positive experiences related to student expectations being met and working independently while supervised by good mentors. Based on these findings, it can be concluded that all medical students, irrespective of geographical background, should be exposed to rural medicine in the undergraduate curriculum

A Rural Scope of Practice for Pharmacists

Introduction : Too few medical graduates opt to become general practitioners or family physicians, particularly in rural areas. Predicted to worsen in the next decade as current practitioners retire, to meet health needs it will be essential to make the best use of all available health professionals. Building on existing collaboration and with better use of technology, community pharmacists have the skills and knowledge to provide expanded services. A ‘rural’ scope of practice for pharmacists, allowing more autonomous practice, could improve health provision and pharmacist retention in rural areas. Objective : To show how pharmacists could better meet the health needs of rural New Zealanders by providing accessible, safe and affordable care in line with New Zealand’s health strategies. Targeted population : Policy makers, health providers or funders, pharmacists and other health professionals practising in rural or provincial areas. Exemplified by the author’s experience as a community pharmacist in Greymouth, a provincial town on the West Coast of New Zealand’s South Island. Highlights : There is a high reliance on locums due to the shortage of medical practitioners in rural areas. A lack of continuity of care has been associated with increased hospital admissions. Community pharmacists are highly accessible with a quarter of New Zealand’s population visiting a pharmacy every month. Comparisons are drawn with changes in scopes of practice for New Zealand health professionals and developments in expanded pharmacist services in other jurisdictions; the United Kingdom and Canada. There is potential for pharmacists to work more collaboratively with better integration, using technology to build on existing collegial relationships. A role between the current ‘pharmacist’ and ‘pharmacist prescriber’ scopes of practice would allow more autonomous practice by pharmacists in rural or hard to staff areas. Using existing linkages with university rural outposts could give pharmacists additional training and a transferable qualification while improving health care provision. Various solutions are offered, to improve services available from rural pharmacists, including creating a vocational scope in rural pharmacy. A ‘rural’ scope of practice, not available to urban pharmacists, fits with New Zealand’s current health policy framework which encourages team work and top of scope practice. Transferability : Rural scopes of practice apply in some medical and nursing fields. Expanded scopes of practice for pharmacists have been successful in other jurisdictions. Rural scopes of practice could be applied to pharmacists and other allied health professionals practising in rural or high needs areas. Conclusions : Experience elsewhere shows pharmacists can use their skills to do more for patient care. Where offered, these services are safe, effective and well received by patients while improving pharmacist job satisfaction. They reduce presentations to medical practices or emergency departments, leading to better use of resources. By providing a richer professional environment, a rural scope of practice for pharmacists could incentivise relocation to areas difficult to staff.

Achieving Consensus on Continuing Professional Development Priorities for Registered Nurses in Rural and Remote India through Nominal Group Technique

Background: Nurses can often be key frontline healthcare professionals working in remote and rural settings due to resource constraints including an acute shortage of medical practitioners. The provision of regular and appropriate Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to support nurses to be able to provide effective health care therefore becomes even more significant in these settings. Engagement and “buy in” from relevant stakeholders at an organisational level is a critical step to ensure CPD provision for nurses. Objectives: The overall aim was to achieve consensus on CPD for registered nurses working in remote and rural settings among key stakeholders using the Nominal Group Technique (NGT). The objectives were to identify stakeholders’ perspectives on the priorities for CPD training for registered nurses; the preferred modes of delivery for CPD and perceived barriers and facilitators for CPD access. Methods: NGT was used as a qualitative method with key organisational stakeholders in several iterative stages in the form of a workshop. Results: 22 senior healthcare professionals involved in medical and nursing education representing north, northeast, central India and the state of Karnataka in South India participated in the workshop. Three key findings emerged from this study: priorities of CPD; preferred modes of CPD delivery; barriers and facilitators to CPD access. Conclusion: Engagement with key stakeholders to identify CPD priorities can help facilitate strategic planning and provision of relevant and accessible CPD programmes for nurses working within remote and rural health care contexts in India.

Design of HDL Model Integrating Biosensors, Disease Analyzer, Expert system and Pump controller for medical application

The research work proposes an automated disease detection and drug delivery unit that can be used for detection and monitoring of cancer. The delivery unit was designed, modeled and implemented in this work. A software reference model for the complete unit as a system is developed and analyzed for its functionality, for the first time. It is found that with the growth in population and due to changes in environmental conditions, human race is prone to various diseases. With shortage of medical practitioners and doctors, there is an immediate need for alternate solutions to cater to the needs of the common man. HDL model is designed by the integration of Biosensors, Disease analyzer, Expert system and Pump controller. The HDL model is synthesized using Xilinx ISE and the synthesis results obtained shows that the design occupies only 148 slices operating at a maximum frequency of 293 MHz. It is thus suitable for real time implementation. The PID controller is modeled using HDL and is synthesized targeting Virtex II pro FPGA device. The results show that the PID controller can operate at a maximum frequency of 1045 MHz.

Measuring the shortage of medical practitioners in rural and urban areas in developing countries: a simple framework and simulation exercises with data from India

Measuring the shortage of medical practitioners in rural and urban areas in developing countries: a simple framework and simulation exercises with data from India