In the next three years Sentara’s doubling the number of Advanced Practice Providers (APPs), better known as physicians assistants and nurse practitioners, in an effort to address doctor shortages.
If you’ve tried to get a primary care doctor in Hampton Roads — or almost anywhere in the U.S. — there’s a good chance you’ve had a tough time .
That’s because of a nation-wide doctor shortage that isn’t expected to get better any time soon. The Association of American Medical Colleges expects the U.S. to be short up to 86,000 physicians by 2036.
When News 3 told you of the issue, you told us about the impact and filled our social media pages with comment like:
“Months to get an appointment anywhere,” a commenter out of Williamsburg said in August.
“I’ve been searching for a primary care doctor since February! NO ONE is accepting new patients,” a commenter out of Hopewell said in August.
Patients are certainly waiting. And 93 percent of primary care providers are overwhelmed, according to a Doximity survey.