|
 Researchers who analyzed U.S. census data on 164,000 health care
professionals found that overall, almost 17 percent weren't born in
America and almost five percent were not U.S. citizens.
"The American health care system relies very heavily on individuals
who were born in other countries," said senior study author Dr.
Anupam Jena of Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General
Hospital in Boston.
Past studies have focused on doctors who trained abroad, "but our
research shows that skilled immigration from other countries is an
important contributor to nearly every occupation within the broader
health care industry," Jena said by email.
Doctors were more likely to be foreign born than other health care
professionals, researchers report in JAMA.
About 29 percent of physicians were born in other countries, and
almost seven percent were not U.S. citizens, the study found.
Roughly 24 percent of dentists were immigrants to the U.S., and four
percent were not citizens.
Among pharmacists, 20 percent were born elsewhere and almost four
percent were not citizens.
And 16 percent of registered nurses were immigrants; three percent
were not citizens.
Slightly more than 23 percent of home health, psychiatric and
nursing aides were born outside the U.S., and almost nine percent
were not citizens, the study also found.
Asia sends the most health care professionals to the U.S.,
accounting for about six percent of the total workforce, followed by
Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, accounting for about five
percent of health workers.
The survey was conducted in 2016 by mail, phone, and in person by
the U.S. Census Bureau.
[to top of second column] |
It's possible that some health care professionals surveyed didn't
disclose their immigration or citizenship status, so the study may
have underestimated the proportion of workers in the industry who
were born outside the U.S., the authors note.
Even so, the results offer fresh evidence that people trained
outside the U.S. are helping to expand access to care for many
Americans, said Dr. Ahmad Masri of the University of Pittsburgh
Medical Center.
"There are shortages in many sectors of healthcare, especially in
the underserved communities, which many foreign-born graduates end
up serving," Masri, who wasn't involved in the study, said by email.
Making it harder for foreign professionals to move to the U.S. and
train here would lead to a significant shortage, especially in the
most vulnerable underserved areas, Masri said.
"Besides, as we focus more on the wellness of healthcare
professionals, the days of working 24/7 non-stop, at least for
physicians, are over," Masri added. "The majority of physicians
nowadays value a reasonable work life balance, and that shift would
only lead to increase in demand for more healthcare professionals."
There are also advantages for patients when the health care
workforce mirrors the diverse languages and cultures of the
population as a whole, said Dr. Vineet Arora of the University of
Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.
"With the increasing diversity of the U.S. population, it's
important our healthcare workforce reflect that diversity," Arora,
who wasn't involved in the study, said by email. "Certain patients,
such as immigrants or those who speak a different language, may
prefer or do better with doctors born outside the U.S. due to
cultural or language factors."
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/2rjq39l JAMA, online December 4, 2018.
[© 2018 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2018 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
 |
