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. 2015 Fall;31(4):365-72.
doi: 10.1111/jrh.12112. Epub 2015 Mar 23.

The Rural Obstetric Workforce in US Hospitals: Challenges and Opportunities

Katy B Kozhimannil  1 , Michelle M Casey  1 , Peiyin Hung  1 , Xinxin Han  1 , Shailendra Prasad  1   2 , Ira S Moscovice  1
Affiliations

The Rural Obstetric Workforce in US Hospitals: Challenges and Opportunities

Katy B Kozhimannil et al. J Rural Health. 2015 Fall.

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe the types and combinations of clinicians who are delivering babies in rural hospitals, their employment status, the relationship between hospital birth volume and staffing models, and the staffing challenges faced by rural hospitals.

Methods: We conducted a telephone survey of 306 rural hospitals in 9 states: Colorado, Iowa, Kentucky, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin, from November 2013 to March 2014 to assess their obstetric workforce. Bivariate associations between hospitals' annual birth volume and obstetric workforce characteristics were examined, as well as qualitative analysis of workforce changes and staffing challenges.

Findings: Hospitals with lower birth volume (<240 births per year) are more likely to have family physicians and general surgeons attending deliveries, while those with a higher birth volume more frequently have obstetricians and midwives attending deliveries. Reported staffing challenges include scheduling, training, census fluctuation, recruitment and retention, and intrahospital relationships.

Conclusions: Individual hospitals working in isolation may struggle to address staffing challenges. Federal and state policy makers, regional collaboratives, and health care delivery systems can facilitate solutions through programs such as telehealth, simulation training, and interprofessional education.

Keywords: access to care; family medicine; health services research; hospitals; physician supply.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Average Number of Obstetricians and Family Physicians in Rural Hospitals by Birth Volume
Notes: P values for significant differences across birth volume groups were from one-way ANOVA tests. Differences in number of obstetricians across birth volumes were statistically significant at P < .001. Differences in number of family physicians were not statistically significant.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Proportion of Obstetricians and Family Physicians Employed by Rural Hospital (vs Private Practice), Stratified by Birth Volume
Notes: P values for significant differences across birth volume groups were from one-way ANOVA tests. Differences in proportion of employed obstetricians across birth volumes were statistically significant at P < .001. Differences in proportion of employed family physicians were significant at P = .03.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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