Sivani S. Kuruvada, M.D.: International physicians can help change Idaho’s medical landscape

By Sivani S. Kuruvada, M.D.

As a first-year resident who recently joined the first class of the Pediatrics Residency of Idaho, I was unaware of the House Bill 0542 until I sat in on a legislative session one fine February morning at the Capitol. Since then, the lawmakers sent the bill to Gov. Brad Little, who signed it at the end of March.

I am an international medical graduate from India, which fueled my passion to speak up in support of this new law. For those who don’t have any idea about what I’m talking about (just like me a couple of months ago), let me break it down for you: Currently, physicians that have graduated medical school and completed their residency outside of the United States need to repeat a residency in the States to become a practicing physician. This law expands Idaho’s licensure program for internationally trained physicians. It creates a pathway to licensure for high-quality, international physicians who have attended a recognized medical school and have already completed residency or other post-graduate training in another country.

When I first joined the pediatrics residency as an international graduate, I surely acknowledged that there were differences in my training abroad. However, with support from my program and co-residents, I felt a lot more comfortable and was able to adapt quickly. Repeating medical school is something I can’t even imagine and people who face the hardships and efforts of residency know how grueling it must be to repeat the training again just to obtain a license to practice medicine.

There is a physician shortage in several states, including Idaho, and putting up such a barrier only limits the number of physicians willing to come and practice in our state. I therefore think it is highly commendable that the Legislature has helped do away with the extra years of residency training and in place of that set up a supervised bridge program with a provisional license for three years before physician is allowed to individually practice. Financially as well, this is very good news for foreign-trained physicians because they can start earning at a practicing physician level right away.

International physicians bring cultural knowledge, linguistic skills and a global perspective, as well as experience with working in resource-deficient areas. Allowing such physicians to practice in states like Idaho, where the immigrant and refugee populations are high, enhances the diversity of care and may even prove to help quality of patient care.

The main concern regarding this transition is the possible compromise to patient care. However, the Idaho Medical Association and Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education have set up strict evaluation mechanisms as well as mentorship programs to allow the incoming physician to showcase their medical knowledge and clinical skills before being allowed to independently practice medicine here.

Idaho ranks last in the number of health care professionals per capita, and by passing this bill not only are we paving the way for an influx of international physicians but also reducing the burden on existing physicians. This is great news.

Sivani S. Kuruvada, M.D., is a pediatric resident in Boise.