BOSTON (WHDH) - Getting in to see a doctor this flu season may prove difficult as Mass General Brigham, the state’s largest healthcare system, now says its two Boston hospitals do not have enough primary care doctors at some locations.
Mass General Brigham shared a statement Wednesday regarding the situation, announcing it is limiting new patients while it experiences “historic and unrelenting capacity challenges.”
David Martin, CEO of the Massachusetts Health Council, separately spoke to 7NEWS.
“Primary care is always one of the more challenging practice areas,” he said.
The Massachusetts Health Council is a health advocacy organization. Speaking on Wednesday, Martin said doctors are complaining about doing more data entry and having less patient interaction.
“From the physician’s angle, it’s a barrier between them and a patient,” he said. “And it really impacts their ability to see the patient, be present with the patient and it also just adds to their administration tasks.”
With fewer people going into the field and more leaving it, patients have been stuck in the middle.
Donald Capone of Waltham said his primary care physician of 30 years retired. Capone, 75, hasn’t found someone to replace her at a time when he needs medical attention more than ever.
“I was safe and happy,” Capone said.
Capone continued, saying he trusted his now-retired physician.
Asked what happens when he does not have a new primary care physician, he responded: “I don’t know yet.”
“So far, I’m lucky,” Capone said. “I haven’t had a real bad circumstance. But I don’t know what I would do if I did.”
The Massachusetts Medical Society issued a warning on Wednesday following Mass General Brigham’s announcement, saying “The dearth of primary care physicians in Massachusetts is no longer a looming public health threat.”
“It is here and represents a major public health crisis that requires urgent and sustainable financial investment and actions aimed at recruiting and retaining primary care physicians,” the society said.
Facing issues accessing a primary care physician, patients have been turning to urgent care locations as an alternative.
The founder of PhysicianOne Urgent Care, though, said they don’t want to replace primary care doctors.
“Hopefully we can offset some of that volume for the primary care, take some of that acute, urgent needs and then hopefully that will open up the primary care offices so that they can focus on the long term, preventative chronic care for the patients,” said Dr. Jeannie Kenkare.
Healthcare advocates say a lot of the current problem is fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, when there was limited access to doctors. Now, advocates say, healthcare systems are trying to catch back up.
Advocates say primary care doctors are essential. Without access to these kinds of doctors, they fear patients will have worse outcomes.
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