Variations in Career Expectancy of Mississippi Physicians

Jamie Boydstun, Mississippi State University

The United States has been facing looming physician shortages for several decades, but Mississippi has been experiencing extensive physician shortages. Physician shortages hinder residents from obtaining routine care easily, which in turn may magnify health disparities, as individuals may postpone care until they encounter severe health problems. Understanding physician career-life expectancy may be one step in relieving Mississippi’s physician shortage. The objective of this study objective is to examine variations in the career-life expectancy of gender, race, practice specialty, and practice area subgroups of Mississippi physicians. Using data from the Mississippi Physician Workforce Database, I constructed career-life tables using the number of years a physician has been licensed to practice in Mississippi. The first five years of practice are the most critical in terms of physician retention. Across all career age groups and subgroups, primary care physicians possess the longest career expectancy, while non-white physicians experience the lowest career expectancy.