Milford chronicle., 1925-03-27
CALL THE DOCTOR


Editorial from North American)
The other day, at a meeting Of one
section Of the American Medical AS
sociation, DR.. William Allen Pusey'
president of that organization, stres-
sed the nationwide need for family
and country doctors. He called at-
tention to the prevailing tendency on
the part of medical graduates to
take up some speciality in practice
and even went so far as to advocate
a shortened medical course, in order
to lessen expenses for young men
entering this profession, and thus
make them more content to enter the
field of general practice.
Meantime, there comes from the
General Education Board, in New
York, a detailed and interesting
study of the distribution of physl-
clans in the United States, summar-
izing an exhaustive survey made by
Lewis Mayors and Leonard V. Har-
rison. and when this is considered
in connection with Doctor Pusey's
statements and suggestions, it sup
plies food for thought in this matter
of vital Importance to all the peo-
pie.
Large and populous rural areas
ready. willing and able to support a
physician, but unable to induce
physician to locate in them and COM
pelled to rely for medical attention
on the uncertain services of practl-
titioners perhaps twenty miles dis
tant: this" says the report mention
ed. 'is the picture which has been
drawn with increasing frequency IN
the past few years wherever physl-
clans or public health workers ga
ther: and almost always the con-
dition described has come about only
within recent years, and threatens
to become more acute in the near
future"
The causes assigned by these
skilled investigators are headed by
one which comedies with Doctor
Pusey's contention-changes in med
ical education. zone reason why
there are too few doctors in the ru-
raj areas is that there are too few
in the country as whole, in conse-
ouence of the fact that too few are
being produced by the medical
schools under the current regime OF
high entrance requirements and pro-
longed course of study. The second,
that, even were their numbers ade-
ouate, the present-day medical grad
yates would refuse to locate IN or
near the rural areas. This reluc-
tance is ascribed to one or another
of the characteristics of existing
medical education-its costliness IN
time and money, the location OF
schools in the larger cities, and the
alleged emphasis on the Importance
of elaborate equipment and facili-
ties in the diagnosis and treatment
Of disease.
The rate at which the rural and
small town family doctor has been
decreasing is indicated by official
figures, which show that in 1906 our
cities of more than $4,000 population
contained % per cent Of our people
and 40. per cent of our physicians
while in 1928 these cities contained
81 per cent of the total population OF
he land and so per cent of the phys
clans, leaving the remaining 63 per
cent to be cared for by the other 5O
Der cent. The actual reduction, since
1906, of the number Of physicians in
owns Of less than 1000 population
las been about 6OO0-from $4,000 to
n, 900.
In view of this decline in abso-
ute numbers of the physicians in
places of less than 1000 inhabitants
t is needless to say that the number
If new graduates settling in these
places during this period has fallen
ar short of making good their losses
By death and migration.
In the decade Of 19O6-16 the num-
Der of deaths and removals was, 1t
IS estimated, about 5000, and the
number of graduates of those years
in these same places was
perhaps about 5000, of whom per-
laps 1000 again removed to larger
places before the end of the period;
30 that, of the approximately $4,000
graduates of the decade, there were
'ound in 1916 in places of less than
1000 inhabitants about 1000.
The reduction in the number Of
ural physicians has been still
,reater. While the country praci-