The MU Faculty Council pressed MU Health Care representatives Thursday in a discussion about increasingly difficult access to care at its clinics.
Speaking at the council’s meeting, MU Health Care CEO Ric Ransom recognized the challenges for people in Columbia and mid-Missouri to access its physicians.
“I don’t want to have us come in front of you and pretend like everything’s perfect because it’s not,” Ransom said.
In the 2024 fiscal year, representatives said MU Health Care saw more than 1.1 million clinic visits, an increase from just more than 846,000 in the previous year. Laura Morris is a family medicine physician who’s booked until February, and she told the council the growth combined with a shortage of physicians has made things difficult for everyone.
“We know,” Morris said. “We need (to be) seen, as well. Our families need (to be) seen. We know how challenging it is to have a sick kid and to call and to hear that there isn’t something available with your doctor.”
To address shortages, MU Health Care created a five-year recruitment plan in 2022 to hire 122 new clinicians by 2027; it has hired 76 in the past two years.
Nicholas LeFevre is member of the council and a family medicine physician at MU Health Care who is booked until April. Toward the end of the discussion, he reminded the council that MU Heath Care is an academic health center that also focuses on research. He said that requires physicians to take time away from seeing patients.
“There is an enormous pressure to be academics and not just clinicians — that is coming down from the highest levels of the university,” LeFevre said. “Research is a huge priority.”
He also noted a 2015 Faculty Council report that suggested practitioners should see one less day of patients per week to increase research productivity.
“You’re struggling to get in with people who wear 25 hats and not just one as clinicians,” LeFevre said. “We have to think about that.”
Morris suggested tools for finding faster care, including the “MU Fast Pass” as an alternative way to schedule appointments. She said this is a phone number that assists with scheduling appointments across varying MU Health Care clinics and providers.
However, Morris clarified to the council, it is primarily designed for people who are looking to establish care with an MU Health Care provider, not those who already can access its patient portal.
She also highlighted Quick Care, which offers same-day treatment of common health issues for anyone over the age of 2 at Hy-Vee stores in both Columbia and Jefferson City.
The Faculty Council also discussed a proposal for a new standing committee on artificial intelligence. Its specific role was debated, and the council will vote on establishing the committee at its next meeting on Oct. 10.
