RALEIGH, N.C. – A hospital in Rockingham County is recruiting nurse practitioners to fill in health-care gaps created by a rural doctor shortage.

When a hospital in Eden, a region with a population of around 15,000, had trouble finding a replacement for a recently retired orthopedic surgeon, Tom Bush got a call at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.

Bush, an associate professor in UNC's Department of Orthopedic Surgery, directs one of the few orthopedic nurse-practitioner fellowship programs in the country, and is an advocate for nurse practitioners providing much-needed health care in rural parts of the state.

"With the aging population and a shortage of primary-care providers, there needs to be an effort to help provide musculoskeletal care, particularly in rural communities," Bush said, "and that's what we've done with the Orthopedic Advanced Practice Provider fellowship at UNC."

Nurse practitioners are increasingly providing primary-care services. According to the Sheps Center for Health Services Research, between 1990 and 2013, the nurse-practitioner workforce jumped by almost 500%, compared with 42% growth in the physician workforce.

A bill introduced earlier this year, known as the SAVE Act, would increase the ability of advanced-practice registered nurses - such as nurse practitioners - to practice with autonomy.

A few days a week, Terra Beek, a family nurse practitioner who specializes in orthopedics, travels to see patients at the hospital in Eden. Beek said she enjoys practicing in a close-knit community.

"But you also learn how to be very resourceful as a provider, and as a new provider, that's been a learning process," she said. "But also, these are the kind of patients that don't have great access to health care, and so they might have had something ongoing - for months and months and months - and not able to get care that they need."

From her experience, Beek said, she believes patients just want a qualified and knowledgeable professional with whom to discuss their health issues.

"Sometimes you get the odd comment, 'Well, are you the doctor?' And it's not so much of a derogatory kind of thing, but as maybe, you know they're not aware that there are so many different kinds of providers these days," she said. "They want someone who is going to help them, and so they just care that someone's qualified."

It's not just rural areas innovating ways to maintain access to health care. With the medical demands of an aging population, the country could face a shortage of more than 100,000 doctors by 2030, according to projections by the Association of American Medical Colleges.


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A new report on lung cancer by the American Lung Association showed Maryland has quite a bit of room to improve diagnoses and treatment but experts said the state has taken some big steps in tackling it.

The report showed almost 17% of Marylanders at high risk for lung cancer were screened, a little less than the national average. Maryland fared better in other metrics, including lower rates of adult smokers and people unable to access treatment.

Aleks Casper, Maryland director of advocacy for the American Lung Association, said to improve the state's standing, Marylanders at risk of lung cancer need to be screened at higher rates.

"If we can get people screened, our chances of impacting all the other metrics improve," Casper explained. "If we get people screened and we can find it early, then we can connect them to treatment and we can connect them to surgery, which impacts outcomes."

The report also noted Latinos in Maryland are the least likely group to be diagnosed early.

Casper pointed out certain policies in Maryland have removed barriers to diagnosis and treatment. Just this year, Maryland became one of 15 states to require insurance to cover biomarker testing, including for lung cancer. The National Cancer Institute described biomarker testing as using a sample of tissue, blood or other fluid to look for genes or chromosomes which could increase a person's likelihood of developing certain cancers, which Casper emphasized is critical.

"Being able to test and determine what the best type of treatment for that person's disease, that kind of really individualized care and giving people access to that, is really important," Casper added.

Those who want to find out if they're eligible to be screened for lung cancer can take a quick test at savedbythescan.org.


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By Kyla Russell for WISH-TV.
Broadcast version by Joe Ulery for Indiana News Service reporting for the WISH-TV-Free Press Indiana-Public News Service Collaboration

Walking pneumonia cases in central Indiana have seen a steep increase in recent weeks, local physicians say.

"But what we've seen this summer, starting in July and August, was an explosion in the number of cases," said Dr. John Christenson, associate medical director of infection prevention at Riley Hospital for Children. "Some require admissions to intensive care units. Children die, adults die .. sometimes it invades the brain and it can cause an infection there."

Walking pneumonia is generally considered less severe than pneumonia, but can have lasting impacts if not caught early on. The disease is caused by mycoplasma pneumoniae, which can damage the lining of the respiratory tract, according to the CDC.

It is spread through droplets released when someone coughs or sneezes.

"Symptoms can begin mildly with sore throat, cough, or chest pain," Christenson said.

About two million people are diagnosed with the disease each year. This year is different, though.

While it's common for young children and adolescents to be impacted, small children born during the Covid-19 lockdown are seeing a surge in cases.

The CDC said diagnoses in kids between two and four years old jumped from 1% to 7.2% over a six-month time span this year.

"We saw a rebound after Covid," Christenson said.

During lockdown, people were wearing masks, staying home, and were not at school and work.

"What happened was a lot of people who could acquire an infection around that time, didn't," Christenson said. "So, now they're all susceptible. You bring in a new germ or an old germ into an environment and it spreads like wildfire."

Several local schools have seen an increase in students, asking parents to be on the lookout for symptoms and to take their child to a physician if needed.

As holiday gatherings begin, Christenson is heeding a similar call, especially in severe cases.

"That's when you need to take them to their healthcare professional to have them seen, and in some cases, get X-rays," Christenson said.

Additionally, Christenson said it is important to make sure families are up-to-date on all vaccinations.


Kyla Russell wrote this article for WISH-TV.


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More than one in three children is now overweight or obese, according to new research published in the Lancet medical journal.

The study found while Kentucky and other southern states are forecast to continue seeing rising levels of childhood obesity, some other states, such as Utah, will experience even higher spikes.

Ben Chandler, CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, said the Commonwealth is struggling to address health care and quality of life for kids.

"I think we're 45th in being overweight," Chandler observed. "It leads to a shorter life expectancy. It leads to tremendous spikes in the odds of getting any number of diseases and it has a huge cost attributed to it. "

Almost half of teens and young adults now are either overweight or obese, compared with 29% in 1990. The number is expected to jump by between 31% and 50% for adolescents, and by 29% to 33% for kids ages 6-11.

Chandler argued the state should increase funding for physical activity programs in schools and address the persistent lack of access to healthy and affordable fresh food. He added the issue cannot be tackled solely through individual behavior changes.

"There are a lot of environmental factors that are involved here," Chandler pointed out. "There's a lot of money, quite frankly, being spent in advertising for things that are bad for you."

The study also found among U.S. adults, if the current pattern continues, more than 250 million people will be overweight or obese by 2050.