What is rural?
The term “rural” carries many interpretations, with its most common definition being tied to population threshold - referring to a city with fewer than 50,000. However, other factors that may qualify an area to be considered rural include population density, land use, distance to surrounding communities, and resource availability, to name a few.
If these definitions were no more than semantics, little conversation would be needed surrounding the topic of rural surgery. However, while 18% of Americans (approximately 60 million) live in rural areas, only 10% of the general surgeon workforce provides care there. What is more, the rural population is typically older, less educated, less well-insured, has more chronic illness, seeks healthcare less often, and thus presents with more advanced disease. This is hypothesized to be due to many factors, such as socioeconomic constraints, distance to the nearest medical facility, lack of available specialties, less support for providers in those areas, mistrust in the medical system, etc.
Scope of Practice
The scope of practice of a general surgeon is often as unique as the community in which they practice. The variety of surgical needs are often much more broad than standard training may provide. In addition to expected general surgery (hernia, gallbladder, appendix, colon, breast, etc.), common additional subspecialties lacking in rural communities which general surgeons may be called to perform include obstetric, gynecologic, vascular, trauma, endoscopy, ENT, endocrine, dermatologic, oncologic, and more.
Why does the society exist?
The mission of the North American Rural Surgical Society is simple - we are committed to supporting, promoting, and educating on rural surgery across North America. We are an organization of surgeons, residents, and med students who see the value of rural surgery and its future for millions of patients.