Sutter Health’s Blueprint for Addressing the Physician Shortage

As healthcare systems across the country strive to meet growing patient demands and address access challenges, recruiting healthcare professionals has become a central strategy. Listen as Sutter Health President & CEO Warner Thomas talks about what his organization is doing to invest in providers and make it easier and more efficient to practice medicine-and what that means for access to healthcare for Sutter's patients.

Thomas recently joined Todd Unger, American Medical Association (AMA) Chief Experience Officer, on the "AMA Update" podcast to discuss the ongoing challenge of the physician shortage and Sutter's multi-pronged approach for addressing it.

Among them is the continuing expansion of the number and reach of its medical education programs, which has Sutter Health on track to become the largest community-based healthcare training institution in Northern California. And data shows that more than three-quarters of physicians who get their residency training in the state remain in California to practice.

"Expanding these capabilities is going to be important in the future-I think, frankly, all health systems should be trying to lean in and do this in a very robust way," Thomas said. "We have so many people coming out of medical school that we just don't have enough residency slots. We definitely view this as a way to secure more physicians here at Sutter Health."

Thomas also spoke about the potential for digital advancements, including artificial intelligence, to make the healthcare experience a more positive one for both patients and caregivers alike. He highlighted efforts at Sutter Health to streamline administrative tasks and documentation through technology, which frees up caregivers to focus more fully on their patients, and to provide patients with the same level of digital access that they expect as consumers in other aspects of their lives.

"We're just in the early stages of how the new technologies can impact our ability to take care of patients in the future," Thomas said. "And I'm optimistic that these tools will make it easier, not harder, for our physicians and other clinicians."

The full podcast interview with Warner Thomas is available on the AMA Update website.