Study: Medical Care from Internationally-Trained Physicians on Par with American-Trained Doctors

A recent study conducted in Pennsylvania by the Foundation for the Advancement of International Medical Education and Research (FAIMER) found that the quality of care provided by internationally-trained physicians is equal to that of the care provided by American Medical Graduates (AMGs).

The study followed 244,153 hospitalizations of heart patients in PA, analyzing care provided by family practitioners, internists, and cardiologists including American- and Internationally-trained physicians.  Length-of-stay, patient outcomes, and death rates were tracked.  Here are the highlights of the findings, according to the press release posted on FierceHealthcare.com:

• No significant difference in death rates was reported amongst patients treated by AMGs vs. IMGs.
• Patients of American-born physicians who graduate from foreign medical schools had higher rates of in-hospital deaths than foreign-born IMGs.
• The study found that patients of AMGs had the shortest lengths-of-stay.
• Board-certified physicians produced lower mortality rates.
• “Physician performance declined over time, with mortality rates and length-of-stays increasing with the number of years since graduation from medical school”.

Learn more and read the complete press release at FierceHealthcare.com.  What are your thoughts on these findings?  Do you feel that they accurately represent the physician population?  Do the findings correspond what you’ve experienced at your hospital?

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