The healthcare industry is bracing for a wave of doctor and nurse shortages as Baby Boomers continue to retire.
"We've all hear about burnout in the healthcare workforce and I think that's very real," said Dr. Richard DiCarlo, Interim Dean of the LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine.
Dr. DiCarlo says there are a lot of reasons for it, from Baby Boomer doctors and nurses getting older, to the stress of treating the pandemic, to changes in the industry in the last several years. But he says it is not unexpected, and efforts to mitigate the coming shortages have been taken.
"We're seeing a huge growth in advanced practice nurses and physician's assistants," said Dr. DiCarlo. "Those individuals can really help relieve the shortage."
And he says there has also been an increase in medical schools and medical school enrollment over the last decade or so. But he acknowledges it takes more than college and medical school to train new doctors. It also takes years of residency.
"So it is a long, long road and increasing the physician workforce takes time," the doctor said.