US Cardiologist Workforce From 1995 To 2007: Modest Growth, Lasting Geographic Maldistribution Especially In Rural Areas

A sufficient cardiology workforce is necessary to ensure access to cardiovascular care. Specifically, access to cardiologists is important in the management and treatment of chronic cardiovascular disease. Given this, we examined the supply and distribution of the cardiologist workforce. In doing so, we mapped the ratios of cardiologists, primary care physicians, and total physicians to the population age sixty-five or older within different Hospital Referral Regions from the years 1995 and 2007. We found that within the twelve-year span of our study, the cardiology workforce grew modestly compared with the primary care physician and total physician workforces. Also, despite increases in the number of cardiologists, there was a persistent geographic maldistribution of the workforce. For example, approximately 60 percent of the elderly population had access to only 38 percent of the cardiologists. Our results suggest that large segments of the US population, specifically in rural and socioeconomically disadvantaged areas, continue to have a lower concentration of cardiologists. This maldistribution could be addressed through a variety of strategies, including the use of telemedicine and economic incentives.