U.S. hospitals need to do more to leverage the skill sets of international medical graduates and incorporate them into the U.S. health systems, particularly amid ongoing physician shortages, a commentary, published July 15 in JAMA Network, urges
Right now, international medical graduates make up about 25% of the medical workforce in the U.S. and have a desire to work at medical institutions across the nation because of the quality of training and since U.S. credentials are internationally recognized.
However, despite a dire need for more physicians in several specialties across the U.S., several barriers to entry for international medical graduates exist.
For one thing, "there have been no certification and licensing options for physicians who have been fully trained abroad unless they repeat formal graduate medical education training at a US institution," the authors from Northwestern University in Chicago and the University of Washington in Seattle wrote.
"This also excludes non-U.S.-trained physicians from independent practice in the U.S.," they added. "In addition to disincentivizing established [international medical graduates] hoping to practice in the U.S., this requirement also introduces increased competition for US doctor of medicine (MD) seniors and doctor of osteopathic medicine (DO) seniors applying to residency and fellowship programs."
But these graduates present an opportunity for hospitals to bolster their workforce if they can work on integrating them more efficiently, the authors argue. If this cannot be done, these graduates will likely look to other countries to practice in instead.
To better integrate foreign medical school graduates, hospitals should work to increase awareness about global medical school accreditation, how the Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates works, how international medical graduates can improve workforce diversity and clinical performance, and other certifications, the authors explain. Training programs for international medical graduates should also encourage experience sharing, and develop designated roles to act as ambassadors for the graduates as they transition to practice in the U.S.
"Medicine in the U.S. is at a crossroads on many fronts," the authors wrote. "At a time of worsening disparity, [international medical graduates] are more necessary than ever, and represent an opportunity for institutions to enhance their programs, bolster academia, promote diversity, and maintain competitiveness in the coming decades rather than a last resort."