Tackling medical deserts: unearthing factors that influence medical students’ attitudes and the path forward

Abstract

Medical deserts," areas characterized by limited access to health-care services, are a growing global concern. These areas often face a shortage of healthcare professionals, which significantly contributes to poor healthcare access, reduced health outcomes, and health inequalities [1]. As future healthcare providers, med-ical students have the potential to address this issue by considering work opportunities in these underserved regions. However, despite various policy interventions in the European Union (EU), there remains a need to understand which measures are most effective in motivating, recruiting, and retaining (young) health-care workers in medical desert areas.In Croatia, as in most other EU countries, medical deserts have emerged by regional disparities in age structures, economic resources, travel time to healthcare facilities, and healthcare provider ratios. These disparities often exist between urban and rural areas, with rural regions typically facing a higher degree of healthcare provider shortage. Addressing these disparities is essential to achieve equitable healthcare access for all popula-tions, especially for those residing in remote and underserved regions. Studies have shown that medical students' attitudes towards working in

Medical deserts in Spain—Insights from an international project

“…1,2 The term "medical deserts" has become popular to describe the lack of primary care physicians in rural areas. [3][4][5] However, there is no uniform definition of "medical deserts". In a recent literature review they are defined as (i) rural areas, (ii) underserved areas or (iii) by applying a measure of distance or time to a health facility, or a combination of these characteristics.…”

“…The unequal distribution of health professionals in Europe has been investigated for many years now 1,2 . The term “medical deserts” has become popular to describe the lack of primary care physicians in rural areas 3–5 . However, there is no uniform definition of “medical deserts”.…”