General paediatricians' views on their plans to leave medical practice - has the "twelfth hour" passed?
Abstract
Up to a third of general paediatricians plan to stop practicing within five years, mainly for age reasons. This finding, based on paediatricians' responses, indicates potential problems that may significantly affect the availability of paediatric health services and quality of care.
The age structure of the general paediatric population is already alarming in the short term, as the number of practitioners in the younger age categories is very low, and more than half are aged 60 and over. Can this alarming situation still be resolved? The article presents the results of a questionnaire-based survey conducted in mid-2018 regarding paediatricians' plans to leave medical practice, as part of research looking at the consequences of the current situation, and suggests possible steps to mitigate the expected negative impacts.