I have been a practicing primary care physician for almost 50 years in the Salt Lake valley. As a graduate of Brigham Young University, I am pleased that BYU will soon have a medical school. The Deseret News has been covering this development closely by printing multiple public statements of the inaugural dean, Dr. Mark Ott.
I’m hopeful the school, in addition to other laudable endeavors, will have a commitment to training primary care physicians. The need for primary care physicians in this state is in a crisis stage. The public should appreciate that the state of Utah ranks 49th in the nation in the number of primary physicians per population size. In the next 10 years, it is likely that most adults will not have a physician to be their primary care provider.
As a graduate of the University of Utah medical school and residency system, it has been difficult to watch this system placing training emphasis on producing high-paying specialist physicians. This emphasis, I believe, has enhanced this scarcity. Fortunately, under the leadership of President Taylor Randall, this trend is changing. Nonetheless, I’m eager to see the BYU medical school as an added partner in helping to solve this crisis.
King Udall, M.D.
Salt Lake City