4 ms·

There are simply not enough doctors for doctors to be doing this work. We have a massive, massive shortage of doctors. The industry is doing everything they c

There are simply not enough doctors for doctors to be doing this work. We have a massive, massive shortage of doctors. The industry is doing everything they can to make it worse by the day, so I won't hold my breath that we'll get the slightest bit of respite. It'd obviously be ideal if everyone could see a doctor for an affordable price any time they wanted. We don't live in the ideal world. This would be a HUGE win for most people.

nradov 1y ago
This is why most routine primary care can be delivered by Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants working under a doctor's supervision.
- closewith 1y ago
  NPs and community paramedics are definitely the future for a huge chunk of the current GP workload, but PAs are a failed experiment which are being rolled back pretty much everywhere.
  - nradov 1y ago
    Are you sure about that? The ranks of PAs have been expanding rapidly. I know there has been some political resistance over expanding their scope of practice but I'm not aware of it being significantly rolled back. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/physician-assistants.htm https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/physician-assistants.htm
    - closewith 1y ago
      The US is the global outlier here and it's in the face of the evidence. The number of PAs globally is plummeting as they're abolished by national authorities.
      - nradov 1y ago
        Nah. Total PA numbers are increasing in many other developed countries as well, including Canada and much of Europe. We can have a discussion about whether this is a good idea, but first you need to stop lying and making things up. https://capa-acam.ca/pa-profession/pa-facts https://capa-acam.ca/pa-profession/pa-facts https://www.srh-university.de/de/folder/news/2025/04-25/erstes-fachbuch-ueber-physician-assistants-in-deutschland-erschienen/ https://www.srh-university.de/de/folder/news/2025/04-25/erst... https://www.bigregister.nl/over-het-big-register/cijfers/verloop-over-5-jaar https://www.bigregister.nl/over-het-big-register/cijfers/ver...
        closewith 1y ago
        The only country in Europe where PAs made any significant inroads was the UK, where their most significant role has been abolished. In Germany and all other countries, PAs are unable to treat patients without direct oversight and they are single digit percentages compared to NPs. It's clear you have no experience in this area, so I wonder why the need to comment at all?
        nradov 1y ago
        PAs have to practice under some level of physician oversight pretty much everywhere. That part was never in dispute. But they can offload physicians for some routine primary care cases where a real doctor isn't needed. The data clearly shows that PA numbers continue increasing in many countries, so obviously they don't consider it a failed experiment and you're just lying to push some kind of personal agenda. It's clear you have no experience in this area, so I wonder why the need to comment at all?
      - bawana 1y ago
        We are the global outlier because it costs an arm and a leg to go to college and medical school. In the rest of the world the education is free/ still affordable. And thats why all the young doctors are also imports.
        1y ago

nradov 1y ago

This is why most routine primary care can be delivered by Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants working under a doctor's supervision.

closewith 1y ago
NPs and community paramedics are definitely the future for a huge chunk of the current GP workload, but PAs are a failed experiment which are being rolled back pretty much everywhere.
- nradov 1y ago
  Are you sure about that? The ranks of PAs have been expanding rapidly. I know there has been some political resistance over expanding their scope of practice but I'm not aware of it being significantly rolled back. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/physician-assistants.htm https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/physician-assistants.htm
  - closewith 1y ago
    The US is the global outlier here and it's in the face of the evidence. The number of PAs globally is plummeting as they're abolished by national authorities.
    - nradov 1y ago
      Nah. Total PA numbers are increasing in many other developed countries as well, including Canada and much of Europe. We can have a discussion about whether this is a good idea, but first you need to stop lying and making things up. https://capa-acam.ca/pa-profession/pa-facts https://capa-acam.ca/pa-profession/pa-facts https://www.srh-university.de/de/folder/news/2025/04-25/erstes-fachbuch-ueber-physician-assistants-in-deutschland-erschienen/ https://www.srh-university.de/de/folder/news/2025/04-25/erst... https://www.bigregister.nl/over-het-big-register/cijfers/verloop-over-5-jaar https://www.bigregister.nl/over-het-big-register/cijfers/ver...
      - closewith 1y ago
        The only country in Europe where PAs made any significant inroads was the UK, where their most significant role has been abolished. In Germany and all other countries, PAs are unable to treat patients without direct oversight and they are single digit percentages compared to NPs. It's clear you have no experience in this area, so I wonder why the need to comment at all?
        nradov 1y ago
        PAs have to practice under some level of physician oversight pretty much everywhere. That part was never in dispute. But they can offload physicians for some routine primary care cases where a real doctor isn't needed. The data clearly shows that PA numbers continue increasing in many countries, so obviously they don't consider it a failed experiment and you're just lying to push some kind of personal agenda. It's clear you have no experience in this area, so I wonder why the need to comment at all?
    - bawana 1y ago
      We are the global outlier because it costs an arm and a leg to go to college and medical school. In the rest of the world the education is free/ still affordable. And thats why all the young doctors are also imports.
      - 1y ago