Rural, 13% Micropolitan, 15% Micropolitan. counties

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1 Minnesota s Health Workforce Physician Assistants 2007 June 2008 Physician are health care professionals licensed to practice medicine under physician supervision. The profession dates from the late 1960s. The curriculum was based on fast-track training of military doctors during World War II. Physician assistant training programs usually take at least two years. Admission requirements vary, but programs commonly require at least two years of college and some health care working experience. Accredited physician assistant programs are offered by a wide variety of institutions, including baccalaureate colleges, university schools of allied health, community colleges and the military. Licensing requires a passing score on the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination, administered by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants. The exam is open only to graduates of programs accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant. Augsburg College of Minneapolis offers the only accredited physician assistant program in Minnesota. Wisconsin has three programs, Iowa two programs, and North and South Dakota each one program. Numbers of physician In July 2007, Minnesota had 1,111 licensed physician, nearly three times the number 10 years earlier, and a 34 percent increase in only two years. The number of licensed physicians increased only 27 percent from 1997 to As a result, the ratio of licensed physicians to physician fell from 38 to Some licensees are retired, not working as physician, or living and practicing in other states. Based on survey responses and licensing data from the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice, the Office of Rural Health and Primary Care estimates approximately 950 physician assistant were practicing at least part time at Minnesota practice sites in mid For explanation of this estimate, see the methodological note at the end of this report. Using the July 1, 2007 population estimate for Minnesota, 950 physician equate to 18 active physician per 100,000 people. Based on data from about 2004, Minnesota ranked 33rd in the number of physician per capita. 1,200 1, Licensed physician Minnesota Note: numbers of registrations July 1 of each year; not necessarily practicing in Minnesota. Source: Minnesota Board of Medical Practice 1 Physician Assistants 2007

2 All data reported is for physician who work at least part time at a primary practice site in Minnesota, according to the Office of Rural Health and Primary Care survey of physician renewing licenses for Geographic location Metropolitan The 21 counties surrounding the seven metropolitan statistical areas connected with Minnesota, as defined by the U.S. Census (Minneapolis-St. Paul; St. Cloud; Rochester; Duluth-Superior, Minn.-Wisc.; Fargo, N. D.; Grand Forks, N. D;. and La Crosse, WIsc.). Micropolitan The 20 Minnesota counties surrounding smaller urban centers of at least 10,000 people. Rural, 13% Micropolitan, 15% State of Minnesota 2007 Population Micropolitan, 11% Physician Assistants Rural, 14% Rural The 46 Minnesota counties outside a Metropolitan or Micropolitan area. Metropolitan, 72% Metropolitan, 75% Geographic Distribution Physician are distributed across the state in close proportion to population. Compared to physicians, physician are more likely to practice in smaller cities and rural areas. The 46 most rural counties have 13 percent of the state s population and about 14 percent of the state s practicing physician Population % Population % Physician Metropolitan 3,810, % 74.9% counties Micropolitan 761, % 11.2% counties Rural 659, % 13.9% Age Group Statewide (n = 653) Metropolitan (n = 489) Micropolitan (n = 73) Rural (n =91) Median age 38 yr. 37 yr. 39 yr. 43 yr. Less than % 39.5% 28.8% 20.9% % 28.0% 31.5% 35.2% % 19.0% 34.2% 28.6% % 12.3% 5.5% 14.3% 65 and older 1.1% 1.2% % Total 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 2 Physician Assistants 2007

3 Gender of Physician Assistants More than 60 percent of all physician are female. Women especially predominate among younger ranks of physician ; 76 percent of physician under age 35 are female. Conversely, most physician age 55 or older are male. Age of Physician Assistants 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0% Age of physician, % 27.0% 26.8% 13.3% 1.1% < Physician are relatively young compared to the physicians they work alongside. The younger age of physician reflects both the shorter training period and the large number of young physician entering the field in recent years. Physician (median = 38 yrs.) are much younger than physicians (median = 48 yrs.). This reflects both a shorter training period, as well as the newness of the profession. Fifty-three percent of physician were less than 40 years old in 2005; more than onethird were under 35. Micropolitan and rural physician are older than physician in metropolitan counties. Only 21 percent of rural physician were under 35, compared to 39 percent of physician working in metropolitan counties. Eighty-three percent of physician under age 35 work in metropolitan counties. Education experience and career plans About 44 percent of physician practicing in Minnesota in 2007 entered the field with a bachelor s degree, and another 45 percent held a masters degree. Less than two percent held doctorate-level degrees. About 9 percent had less than a 4-year college degree. Age Responses % Male % Female All active % 62.6% physician Under % 76.4% % 61.5% % 62.5% % 26.0% 65 and older 7 Metropolitan % 62.0% Micropolitan % 74.0% Rural % 57.1% Responses (n= 637) Percent No Physician Assistant degree 3.6% Associate degree 5.1% Bachelor s degree 44.4% Master s degree 45.2% Doctorate 1.6% 3 Physician Assistants 2007

4 Twenty-three percent received their physician assistant education in Minnesota. Younger physician are more likely than older physician to have trained in Minnesota. Thirty percent of physician under 40 trained in Minnesota. Twelve percent of physicians trained in Minnesota. Unlike the case for physicians, nurses and dentists, nearterm retirements are not a major concern for physician. Less than 20 percent expect to leave the field within five years. Nearly six-in-10 (59 percent) expect to practice more than 10 additional years. Types of Practice Site The 2007 survey found a substantially lower percentage of physician working in provider offices and clinics, and a higher percentage working in hospitals than in It is not clear if the shifts are real, or due to changes in response rates. s Most physician work in provider offices, clinics or urgent care facilities. Hospitals are the principal work site of onefourth of physician. Metropolitan physician are more likely than micropolitan or rural physician to work in hospitals. Three out of four rural physician work in provider offices or clinics, compared with only 55 percent in metropolitan counties. More than 10 percent of metropolitan and micropolitan physician work in urgent care clinics; urgent care clinics are uncommon in the 46 most rural counties. Despite the overall predominance of female physician, nearly half of physician working in hospitals are male. Twothirds of physician in provider offices and clinics are female. Percent Responses trained in Age group Minnesota Under age 40 30% 338 Age % 219 Age 55 and over 27% 70 All active physician 23% 637 Type of Site Statewide Metropolitan Micropolitan Rural Responses Office/clinic 59.5% 55.2% 69.4% 75.0% Urgent Care 9.7% 10.6% 13.9% 1.1% Hospital 25.3% 27.9% 13.9% 20.5% Other 5.8% 6.3% 2.8% 3.4% Note: percentages for micropolitan and rural are less reliable because of the small number of respondents. Type of Site Responses Male Female Office/clinic % 67% Hospital inpatient % 52% Responses (n=631) Percent Expect to work 0-5 years 19.2% Expect to work 6-10 years 21.7% Expect to work more than 10 years 59.1% 4 Physician Assistants 2007

5 Methodology The Office of Rural Health and Primary Care asks physician to answer questions about their employment status and the nature of their practices each year when they renew their registrations. Response to the survey is voluntary and does not affect license renewal. Data reported here is from responses received from physician renewing their licenses for Renewals were due July 1, 2007, so most physician answered the survey in May or June The Board of Medicine received about 975 registration renewals in This estimate is based on the number of active registrations on July 1, minus the number of new registrations during Survey responses were received from 761 physician renewing licenses, for a response rate of 78 percent. At the time of registration renewal, 653, or 86 percent, of these said they were working at least part time at a primary practice site in Minnesota. The exact number of physician actually practicing in Minnesota is not known. If the 86 percent figure is applied to the total number of registered physician, about 950 physician were working in Minnesota in mid This would be a reasonable estimate if practitioners working in Minnesota were no more likely than physician not working in Minnesota to respond to the survey. However, active Minnesota practitioners were probably more likely to respond, making this estimate somewhat high. Using the July 1, 2007, population estimate for Minnesota, 950 physician equate to 18 active physician per 100,000 people. Because of different data sources and definitions, the estimate of 18 active physician per 100,000 people is not directly comparable to other reported data. The United States Health Workforce Profile (The New York Center for Health Workforce Studies, 2006) reported that Minnesota had 14.3 physician per 100,000 population, compared to 16.9 nationally. Minnesota ranked 33 rd among 50 states. The highest per capita numbers were in New England states and sparsely settled plains and mountain states to the west of Minnesota. Physician assistant data was obtained from the American Academy of Physician Assistants, and while not dated, probably was from about Minnesota Department of Health Office of Rural Health and Primary Care Health Workforce Analysis Program P.O. Box St. Paul, MN (651) If you require this document in another format, such as large print, Braille or cassette tape, call (651) or TTY (651) Contact for more information The Health Workforce Analysis Program (651) June Physician Assistants 2007