Doctor Shortage

RURAL HOSPITALS are losing more than twice their share of doctors to the Persian Gulf War, according to a study. About 11% of the nation’s doctors practice in rural areas. But the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found that rural doctors make up about 28% of the estimated 2,200 doctors called to active duty. The departure of one doctor from a rural hospital can mean the elimination of a particular service. In Central California, for example, the 42-bed George L. Mee Memorial Hospital in King City lost its only surgeon and now must send surgical patients up to 50 miles away. The study, based on telephone surveys of 215 hospitals in 44 states, found that 34% had lost some clinical staff.