Need more doctors
My name is Leanne Kirk. I was born in Hilo and now live in Los Angeles. I am an only child, and my parents still live in Hilo.
I am very concerned about the shortage of doctors in Hilo. While the doctors in Hilo are doing their best, the majority of doctors are overworked and overwhelmed because of the shortage of doctors.
Many times the wait to see a specialist for the first time could be many months. Many doctors are approaching retirement age, which will increase the problem even more. I heard stories of doctors who want to retire but keep working because they feel guilty and bad since there is no one to replace them. This is truly commendable, but not fair to the doctors.
The population in Hilo is aging, and many people are in their 80s or 90s. While this also adds to the problem of a shortage of doctors, the senior population still deserves to receive good medical care. They should not be “written off” because they are old.
These people are still our beloved mothers, fathers, grandparents and great-grandparents and should receive the best medical care. Since people are living past 100, there needs to be an attitude or paradigm shift regarding our attitudes toward seniors. People in their 80s can still live another 20 years with good mental abilities and enrich our families’ lives.
What can be done to entice more doctors to practice in Hilo? Have there been any initiatives to recruit doctors to move to Hilo, such as advertising campaigns or monetary enticements? I have not kept myself informed regarding this issue in Hilo, so perhaps things are being done of which I am not aware.
I thought I would write this letter to encourage everyone to put our heads together to try and resolve this problem. Please write in if you have any ideas or know about things being done to solve this problem. If everyone is informed about what is being done by various groups, hopefully we can all work together to bring more doctors to Hilo for our current and future generations. Thank you!
Leanne Kirk
Santa Monica, Calif.