GEOGRAPHIC-DISTRIBUTION, SUPPLY, AND NEED FOR GENERALIST PHYSICIANS IN ALASKA

This study provides the first comprehensive description of Alaska's ge ographic distribution of generalist physicians relative to population. All 443 generalist care physicians (family, general, general internal medicine, and pediatric) or their office managers were questioned abo ut their specialties, ZIP codes, employers, populations served, and ho urs spent per week offering direct patient care. The results indicated a 30% overall shortage of generalist physicians for the state, repres enting roughly 141 full-time-equivalent generalists relative to nation al practice patterns and trends of health maintenance organizations. O f 17 primary health care areas, including the Anchorage area, 15 showe d a need for additional generalist physicians. Most areas had a 20 to 40% shortage. Concerns about transportation and financial barriers to access to care, especially in remote regions, were raised. Other needs emphasized included knowledge of contributions of midlevel health car e professionals, Alaska Native versus non-Native care, efforts to trai n and retain physicians in Alaska, and the need for longitudinal track ing of practice patterns.