3. Health Care News Bytes

The FSBPT has finalized a settlement agreement with three Philippines-educated candidates who applied for physical therapy licenses in Georgia.  The three candidates filed a lawsuit on November 2, 2010 in the Superior Court of Fulton County Georgia against the FSBPT and the Georgia State Board of Physical Therapy challenging the FSBPT’s decision to require candidates educated in the Philippines, Egypt, India and Pakistan to take the NPTE-i form of the National Physical Therapy Examination.

Candidates who graduated from physical therapy programs in the Philippines, Egypt, India and Pakistan will not be required to take NPTE-i in order to qualify for licensure in the state of Georgia.  However, the settlement has no effect on those applying for licensure in another state or jurisdiction. 

The FSBPT will be implementing fixed-date NPTE testing for all candidates on July 1; beginning on this date, there will no longer be a requirement for certain candidates to take the NPTE-i.

https://www.fsbpt.org/NewsAndEvents/FSBPTresolvesDispute/

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The U.S. Consulate in Manila, Philippines has been denying visitor visas to physical therapists and other health professionals seeking to enter the United States to take licensing examinations necessary to qualify for H-1B visas. The State Department has now amended the Foreign Affairs Manual to clarify for consular officers the rules regarding licensing. Under the rule, updated on March 31, 2011, “If a State permits aliens to enter the United States as a visitor to take a licensing exam, then USCIS will generally require a license before they will approve the H-1B petition…Therefore, a [visitor’s] visa should not be denied based solely on the fact that the applicant does not already hold a license to practice in the United States.”

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The Educational Commission on Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) announced that the number of first-year (PGY-1) residency positions increased for the ninth consecutive year.  The 2011 National Residency Matching Program (“Match”) had an increase of 612 positions, for a total of 23,421 first-year positions. 

However, the number of foreign medical graduates (FMGs) who matched to first-year positions decreased compared to 2010.  Of the 6,659 FMG participants who were not U.S. citizens, 2,721 obtained first-year positions; this is a decrease of 160 compared to last year.

In spite of this, the total number of FMGs, which includes U.S. citizens educated outside the United States, filling PGY-1 positions in the 2011-2012 academic year will be higher than those obtaining positions through the 2011 Match. While a majority of PGY-1 positions in the U.S. are filled through the Match, a large number of FMG applicants obtain positions outside of the Match.

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Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) announced that he is retiring from the Senate and will not seek reelection in 2012.  Senator Kent Conrad has long championed J-1 waivers for physicians and the State 30 program is named in his honor. Senator Conrad will remain in office until the end of next year and is hoping to secure permanent authorization of the Conrad 30 program.

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According to a report by the Healthcare Association of New York State (HANYS), New York faces a growing shortage of physicians.  While the state currently has a shortage of 1,000 physicians, the shortage is likely to continue due to the retirement of "baby boomers" and difficulties in recruiting physicians.

According to the report, 33% of hospitals stated they had to reduce and/or eliminate services in 2009 because of a shortage of physicians.  Also, 69% of hospitals surveyed stated there were times their emergency departments did not have coverage for certain specialties. 

The complete report can be viewed online at http://www.hanys.org/communications/publications/2011/2011-01-10_physician_survey_results_2010_electronic.pdf

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A recent HealthDay News article reported that patients in hospitals where nurses work long hours are much more likely to die of pneumonia and heart attack.

Due to a nationwide nursing shortage, nurses are required to work 12-hour shifts in most U.S. hospitals.  However, the long schedule, shift work, and not enough time off the job lead to sleep deprivation.  Good nursing care requires alertness and vigilance.  The long hours leading to sleep deprivation negatively impact the quality of nursing care and increase the potential for error.

The long hours worked by nurses are not only due to the nursing shortage; physician working hours have also contributed.  Hospitals have reduced the number of hours a physician-in-training may work, causing nurses to have to compensate.

http://consumer.healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=648964

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that office-based physicians are seeing an increase in older patients as the baby boom population ages.  The report looked at a ten-year period, from 1998 to 2008.  It found that during this period, 57% percent of patients visiting physicians in 2008 were 45 or older, while only 49% were 45 or older in 1998. During this period, the number of physician visits increased by 13% for patients who were 65 and older.

The report can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db41.pdf.

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The New York Daily News reported on The Welcome Back Center at LaGuardia Community College, which is helping immigrant health care workers return to their chosen fields by assisting them through the U.S. medical certification process.  The program is part of the Welcome Back Initiative, which has eight centers across the United States.

The Welcome Back Center works with doctors, nurses, dentists and psychologists from 15 countries.  Many of these medical professionals have been working in the U.S. as janitors and taxi drivers.

The center provides test prep classes and referrals for English language courses.  The center also assists immigrant workers to find medical-related jobs such as medical assistants or technicians while they go through the certification process.

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/queens/2010/12/14/2010-12-14_helping_immigrant_health_care_workers_return_to_work.html#ixzz186QGFKfz
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