Social shifts created by the pandemic are drawing people out of cities and into more rural areas. Country living has increased appeal: nearly half of all U.S. adults said they prefer to live in a small town or rural area in 2020, up from 39% in 2018, per a recent Gallup study.

The primary reason? Remote workers now have an opportunity to live where they want rather than living physically close to their jobs. It’s also easier to practice social distancing outside of urban areas. Small towns and rural areas are becoming more popular, but it’s important to ask: does this mean doctors are more willing to move to rural areas, too? 

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Although the physician shortage in rural America has long been a challenge for recruiters, it has become amplified right now. Nearly 20% of U.S. citizens live in rural locations, yet less than 10% of U.S. physicians practice there.  

With a majority of elective care cancelled this past spring, and many people hesitant to go to a hospital because of coronavirus, Alan Morgan, the head of the National Rural Health Association says the coronavirus is a threat to rural hospitals that are already at the financial brink. Unfortunately, a limited number of physicians (and facilities closing) means many people will go without the medical care they need. In fact, 23% of people in rural areas already say access to good medical care and doctors is a major problem in their community, compared to 9% in suburban areas, per PMC.

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In rural America, physician recruitment is a life or death issue for patients and hospitals alike. The National Rural Health Association (NRHA) reports that more than 25 percent of the U.S. population lives in rural areas, yet less than ten percent of the country’s doctors practice there. In fact, a new poll indicates that one out of every four people living in rural areas said they couldn't get the health care they needed and about a quarter of those said it's because their health care location was too far or difficult to get to.

Even more concerning, there’s actually a decreased life expectancy in rural America and hospital closures in rural towns aren’t helping. In the NPR poll, close to one out of every ten respondents said their small-town hospital had recently closed. As a physician recruiter, you know hiring and retaining candidates for rural opportunities is no easy task though. For some rural communities, the need is so dire their pitch is essentially that: come here and make a difference.

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You know how difficult it can be to recruit physicians for rural positions. Attracting and retaining well-trained physicians to work in rural America is an ongoing struggle: 77% of rural counties are facing a shortage of primary-care providers, and 8% don't have even a single primary-care physician, according to a report from the federal Office of Rural Health Policy.

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