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[Consistency of data on medical manpower: the French experience ]
Insights
Accurate statistics on medical doctors in France were estimated by the Ministry of Health, addressing gaps in previous data from the Medical Council and health administration. This improved physician data covers all active doctors by region and specialty.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Medical Statistics
- Health Workforce Research
Context:
- Existing French data sources for medical doctors (Medical Council registration, diploma declarations, sickness insurance reimbursements) had significant gaps.
- Previous statistics did not accurately reflect the total number of active physicians in France.
- Data from 1998 onwards was needed to improve the accuracy of physician demographics.
Purpose:
- To estimate the accurate number of active physicians in France by region, specialty, and place of work.
- To reconcile and improve upon existing, disparate data sources for medical doctors.
- To provide reliable data for health workforce planning and analysis.
Summary:
- The Ministry of Health's statistical office initiated a project to accurately count active physicians.
- This project integrated data from multiple sources, including the National Statistical Office's annual employment survey.
- The methodology aimed to provide consistent and reliable physician statistics across different regions and practice types.
Impact:
- The project yielded reasonably consistent results, enhancing the accuracy of French medical workforce data.
- Improved data facilitates better understanding of physician distribution and potential shortages.
- This work provides a foundation for evidence-based health policy and resource allocation.
Abstract:
Various sources provide statistics on medical doctors in France: (i) for deontologic control purpose, physicians have to register with the Medical Council: (ii) moreover, they have to declare their diploma to the local health administration; (iii) the reimbursements made by the Sickness Insurance Fund make it possible to obtain statistics on doctors in private practice. Until recently, the sources in (i) and (ii) provided data evidencing large gaps, although theoretically they covered all active medical doctors in France. From 1998 onwards, the statistical office of the Ministry of Health undertook a project aimed at estimating the accurate number of active physicians by region, specialty and place of work (hospital or ambulatory care). The project was based, inter alia, on the annual survey of employment conducted by the National Statistical Office. The results were reasonably consistent. The article describes the various steps of the endeavour and the difficulties encountered.