primary care providers and nurse practitioners opening up primary care offices and rural health clinics .”
In other instances , patients may call on emergency services because they have no other means of receiving medical attention .
“ If someone calls for an ambulance and an ambulance arrives , they may have to go to the hospital . They may need stitches and could go to an urgent care facility or their family practice , but they just need a ride ,” says Brock Malcolm , special counsel at Bowles Rice LLP . “ They call the emergency room because they cannot get to a doctor , but the emergency transport could have just as easily taken them to family care in Charleston where they could see their primary care provider , avoid the high costs of an unnecessary emergency room visit and maintain a continuity of care .”
One possible solution is community health workers ( CHWs ). CHWs are frontline public health workers who have a close understanding of the community they serve . This trusting relationship allows them to serve as a link to the community to facilitate access to services and improve the quality and cultural competence of service delivery .
“ You have a rise of community health workers who are going out and making relationships ,” Malcolm says . “ It is amazing how these relationships are able to reach patients in a way that clinical people have not been able to — and for less money and with good results .”
While CHWs are assisting in the overall issue of access to care in Appalachia , hospitals nationwide are struggling to recruit and retain staff . According to July 2021 data published by the Association of American Medical Colleges , the U . S . could see an estimated shortage of between 37,800 and 124,000 physicians by 2034 , including shortfalls in both primary and specialty care .
“ We are having a hard time recruiting and retaining staff to work in our hospitals , which is going to put more strain on the entire delivery system ,” Kauffman says . “ At the West Virginia Hospital Association , we work closely with the higher education institutions who are trying to help support young people choosing to go into those professions .” •