University of Texas at El Paso freshmen Makenna Piñon (right) and Luke Briggs in the medical simulation lab at Texas Tech University Health Science Center. (Photo by Jack Orleans/Cronkite News)
Brian Wilson, education director for the Healthcare Simulation Training and Education Center, controls an educational medical simulation from inside the control room. (Photo by Jack Orleans/Cronkite News)
The main campus of Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in El Paso. (Photo by Jack Orleans/Cronkite News)
EL PASO, Texas – For Makenna Piñon, Texas' doctor shortage isn't just a state issue, it's a personal issue with implications for her health.
A freshman biomedical science student at the University of Texas at El Paso was born with a congenital heart defect that required him to travel outside his hometown for treatment.
“It (health care) is much more advanced outside of El Paso,” Pignon said. “I went to Houston for treatment, so when I went there and saw the health care system and care here, I knew I needed to do it somehow.”
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El Paso is one of 224 Texas counties currently facing a shortage of medical professionals, according to the Cicero Institute, a public policy group. It also reported that more than 6 million Texans live in Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs). HPSA is a designation for areas with 3,500 or more patients per provider.
The Association of American Medical Colleges projects a national shortage of up to 86,000 physicians by 2036. According to the Cicero Institute, Texas will have a shortage of 20,420 doctors by 2030.
“The Paseo del Norte region (around El Paso) is very similar to the state and the nation in facing a shortage of physicians and a shortage of specialists,” said Cynthia Perry, associate dean of admissions at the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine. . at Texas Tech University El Paso Health Sciences Center. “As part of our regular recruitment efforts with our medical schools, we value and prioritize students from counties that border our region.”
Last spring, Perry supervised the first cohort of students in Texas Tech Health El Paso's MedFuture program. This program is a pipeline program offered to local high school seniors who plan to attend Texas Tech Health El Paso with a strong desire to attend medical school.
The program provides guidance and guidance to students throughout their undergraduate years to prepare for medical school, including MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) preparation, internship opportunities, and volunteer work.
MedFuture students who complete the program are guaranteed an interview with Foster School of Medicine, but the current acceptance rate is only 4.5%.
High school seniors interested in the MedFuture program must be Texas residents with SAT or ACT scores above the state average and have already been accepted to UTEP.
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in El Paso requires students to learn Spanish to bridge language gaps and help its Hispanic majority population get the care they need. (Photo by Jack Orleans/Cronkite News)
“Typically, we get about 4,000 to 5,000 applications a year, and that’s for 125 spots,” Perry said. “We only interview about 600 candidates, so if we can secure an interview, we can get through all those hurdles.”
The program accepted five students last year and plans to expand to up to 25 students per cohort.
“We wanted to make sure we were a small enough group so we could really focus on personal growth,” Perry said. “This is a large budget commitment from both universities (UTEP and Texas Tech), so we felt five was the right size.”
Pignon and her friend Luke Briggs were among a handful of fourth-year students selected for the 2023 MedFuture program. The two first learned about MedFuture the summer before their senior year, when they attended a summer medical camp at Texas Tech University.
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“When I first wanted to become a doctor, I didn't know there was a medical school here,” Briggs said. “I found out when I went to summer camp this year. …For me, this is where I grew up, so it makes sense to stay here. This is where I go to the doctor. This is where I'm the people. It's a place where you can find out.
Once a student earns a spot in the MedFuture program, they will have access to Texas Tech University Health resources in the Health Sciences Center to prepare for medical school throughout their UTEP career.
“We provided the first group with gift cards to bookstores to help offset that cost,” Perry said. “Another big focus is that we are planning a pretty intensive summer program for them. We have identified a summer research program where they can get paid to do research over the summer. This definitely offsets the need for students to work.”
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, El Paso's poverty rate in 2022 was 18.9%, higher than the state average of 14%. As of 2022, 81.5% of El Pasoans age 25 and older had a high school diploma or higher, but only 81.5% had a bachelor's degree or more than one degree. was only 27.1%.
For the 2023-2024 academic year, Texas residents pursuing a bachelor's degree at UTEP are expected to pay approximately $19,558, while first-year medical students at Texas Tech Health are estimated to pay $22,378 It has been.
“I am a first-generation student in my family,” Pignon said. “No one in my immediate family, at least, has gone to college or graduated from college. But joining this program provides so many benefits that I never thought I would get.” .”
Dr. Jesus Guzman, a research fellow in gastroenterology, remembers the struggles he experienced while pursuing his medical education. (Photo by Jack Orleans/Cronkite News)
Dr. Jesus Guzman, a gastroenterology fellow, said he thought doctors only came from long, well-educated families.
“I never thought I could do it,” Guzman said. “I grew up in a low-income area. My mother didn't graduate high school. She was educated in Juarez and finished through seventh grade. She knew that school was important. He always pushed me toward school.”
Guzman, who graduated from UTEP with a degree in accounting, never dreamed he would pursue a career in medicine like Briggs and Piñon until he attended his white coat ceremony in 2014.
“I thought, 'I don't know how to do this, but I have to do this,'” Guzman said. “There were a lot of challenges before I figured out how to get into medical school and how to pay for medical school.”
Guzman said he knows firsthand the impact the physician shortage has on communities.
“We (my family and I) all went through those problems,” Guzman said. “First of all, when you don't have insurance, it's already difficult. You either pay for insurance or you pay for food. That already limits your access[to health care]. ”
Although 45.2% of Texas medical residents choose to practice out of state, leaving El Paso never crossed Guzman's mind.
“When I went to the white coat ceremony, they were talking about it,” Guzman said. “They want to make an impact in the community. That's what medical school was about.”
As the physician shortage continues, finding bilingual physicians in a predominantly Spanish-speaking population has become extremely difficult. El Paso's population is 81.6% Hispanic, with 67% of city residents speaking a language other than English at home, but only 11.3% of Texas' practicing physicians are Hispanic.
Texas Tech Health El Paso is one of the only schools that requires all medical and dental students to participate in a four-year Spanish language program.
Gilberto Garcia, lead instructor of the Spanish program at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in El Paso. (Photo by Jack Orleans/Cronkite News)
Gilberto García, lead instructor of the Spanish program, said, “Our main goal is not only to teach vocabulary, but also to provide guidance for future healthcare providers to conduct clinical interviews with patients.'' There is,” he said. “It's a combination of conversational skills and medical terminology. It also takes local culture into account.”
Students must pass a placement exam to participate in beginner, intermediate, or advanced Spanish classes. Both medical and dental students are required to attend her one-hour language class per week for the first two years.
“The main goal is to address the linguistic gap between patients and healthcare professionals,” Garcia said.
Guzman took the program and said being able to communicate in Spanish is important in order to provide the best care.
“For some people, there is already a lack of education to understand medical knowledge,” Guzman said. “Imagine trying to explain something complex that a patient has to deal with on their own. How are you going to communicate and translate that message?”
