There are a number of reasons why, despite the growing numbers of physicians, there are fewer in rural and inner city areas, but all of the reasons are centered on one thing, and that is autonomy. Physicians will apply for work in areas that suit them best regardless of whether there is a need for their services elsewhere - something they can hardly be criticized for because that is what we all do.
Reasons for choosing to work in an urban area include having access to better facilities and equipment, as larger practices and hospitals face diverse challenges on a daily basis. This means that they need to have medical equipment and procedures that can deal with such cases. Doctors tend to thrive on these kinds of challenges, so it is obvious that they are going to be attracted to these jobs.
Another reason for opting to work in an urban area is to actually counter the above reason. People have stereotypical ideas of what an inner city or a rural hospital or practice will be like. Inner city equals deprivation, poverty and crime in a lot of people’s heads, and rural equates to boring, poor and uneducated. Whether these preconceptions have any base in reality is irrelevant, physicians will go where they think they are going to be happier.
Urban facilities tend to have more money to spend on research projects too, so many physicians are going to be attracted to them for that reason if they want to make medical history.
It isn’t only their working lives that are taken into consideration when physicians are looking for work; many of them also believe that urban areas will give them an overall better quality of life. Of course, this will be subjective based on who you ask!
Reasons for choosing to work in an urban area include having access to better facilities and equipment, as larger practices and hospitals face diverse challenges on a daily basis. This means that they need to have medical equipment and procedures that can deal with such cases. Doctors tend to thrive on these kinds of challenges, so it is obvious that they are going to be attracted to these jobs.
Another reason for opting to work in an urban area is to actually counter the above reason. People have stereotypical ideas of what an inner city or a rural hospital or practice will be like. Inner city equals deprivation, poverty and crime in a lot of people’s heads, and rural equates to boring, poor and uneducated. Whether these preconceptions have any base in reality is irrelevant, physicians will go where they think they are going to be happier.
Urban facilities tend to have more money to spend on research projects too, so many physicians are going to be attracted to them for that reason if they want to make medical history.
It isn’t only their working lives that are taken into consideration when physicians are looking for work; many of them also believe that urban areas will give them an overall better quality of life. Of course, this will be subjective based on who you ask!
