The Medical Deserts of Rural America
Keith Dayton
Kelley School of Business
In the medical desert that has become rural America, nothing is more basic or more essential than access to doctors, but they are increasingly difficult to find. The federal government now designates nearly 80 percent of rural America as “medically underserved.” It is home to 20 percent of the U.S. population but fewer than 10 percent of its doctors, and that ratio is worsening each year because of what health experts refer to as “the gray wave.” Rural doctors are three years older than urban doctors on average, with half over 50 and more than a quarter beyond 60. Health officials predict the number of rural doctors will decline by 23 percent over the next decade as the number of urban doctors remains flat. This course considers the economic, social, geographic, and other significant challenges by focusing reflectively and creatively, in considering all possible “rural desert” factors and finding viable and sustaining solutions.
Catalog Information: HON-H 240 SCIENCE AND SOCIETY