Doctor recruitment efforts plow forward

It's no secret. There is a shortage of family medical doctors in Le Mars.

Medical Associates -- the local clinic -- and Floyd Valley Hospital are in the midst of recruiting at least two doctors to bring to Le Mars.

"There are doctors on the schedule for the next couple of weeks to visit Le Mars; meet, greet, learn and explore Le Mars," said FVH Administrator Mike Donlin.

Currently six medical doctors serve Le Mars at Medical Associates, assisted by three physician assistants and two nurse practitioners.

Donlin said their goal is to add two more doctors.

That number is based in part on formulas that look at a community's population and the geographic location.

"For the family medicine part, that ratio is somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,800 to 2,000 people per doctor," Donlin said. "You can accomplish some of that with physicians assistants and nurse practitioners."

Currently, Medical Associates can get patients in to see a doctor or mid-level care provider, but it's not always possible to get them in to see the one of their choice, according to Julie Sitzmann, clinic manager at Medical Associates.

"Our goal is that patients will be seen by the physician they want," Sitzmann said. "We greatly appreciate people's patience."

The doctor search is made more difficult by Medical Associates and FVH's desire to employ doctors trained in pregnancy care and delivery, or obstetrics (O.B.).

"The problem is there is a huge shortage of family practitioners, especially family practitioners that do O.B.," Sitzmann said. "All the small communities are looking for them."

Most people in medical school now are choosing a specialty like oncology, cardiology or surgery, Sitzmann said.

"They're not choosing family practice, mostly because the reimbursement is so low and there's high liability, especially with O.B.," she added.

But Medical Associates and FVH are keeping O.B. on their list of requirements for a new doctor.

"We're sticking to our guns with getting somebody in O.B. because our community needs O.B.," Sitzmann said. "We don't want people to have to deliver outside of our community."

Last fall, Medical Associates and FVH contacted Jackson and Coker, a recruiting firm that connects physicians with employers, to help with the search.

"They've toured the town, the clinic and the hospital, gotten information about what we're looking for and are out searching nationwide to find somebody that fits our requirements," Sitzmann said.

Jackson and Coker receive a retainer fee to perform the search and, if they find a match for the physician openings in Le Mars, will be paid for that success, she explained.

"We're also not going to hire some Joe Blo off the street who's not going to provide quality health care," Sitzmann said. "Finding the right people for our community may take a little longer, but in the long run will be very worth it."

Along with hiring a recruiting firm, Donlin said, they are also taking tips from locals on doctors that might be prospects.

"There are still people in the community with connections," he said. "We try to keep our eyes open."