Cam Patterson: ‘Shrinking’ the state to expand access to care
Arkansas has one of the lowest per-capita rates of primary care physicians in the country, limiting access to quality health care in rural areas.
While working to retain and recruit PCPs, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences is relying on advancements in digital health to “shrink” the state, according to Chancellor Cam Patterson. That means figuring out more efficient ways to reach patients and provide high quality care regardless of Arkansans’ location or economic status.
“Digital health is a way to shrink the state and reach everyone,” Patterson says. “Where someone lives should not determine whether they get the best care and possibly, whether they live or die. At UAMS, we have recently established the Institute for Digital Health & Innovation. Our goal is for UAMS and the state of Arkansas to become digital health leaders among rural states. No one is going to come in to our state and solve this problem for us. We can and must do it ourselves through tools like digital health.”
Patterson cites data indicating a shortfall of between 43,000 to 122,000 physicians nationally by 2030. He calls this physician shortage a “very real and significant problem.”
Areas like the Arkansas Delta are especially underserved. As the state’s flagship public health institute, UAMS is working to change that. Its statewide regional programs currently train 814 physicians in 126 Arkansas communities representing 68 of the state’s 75 counties.
“It is difficult to recruit physicians to underserved areas of our state,” he admits. “We started our regional programs more than 40 years ago to better serve those areas of the state like the Delta with the greatest need. We certainly hope that the residents who train there in our existing programs will choose to stay there to practice. All Arkansans should have access to high quality health care close to home. However, as a largely rural state, we have experienced significant shortages of physicians and other providers for many years, and our aging population and other factors will exacerbate the situation in the years ahead.”