Addressing the Neurologist Shortage Through Career Opportunities and Supporting Early Investigators: Claire Henchcliffe, MD, DPhil, FANA; Ali Ezzati, MD

WATCH TIME: 4 minutes

"It's clear that they're all very highly invested in training the next generation. Dr. Ezzati brought up that it's not just a shortage of neurologists, but he said, we won't have enough neurologists to be able to run the number of clinical trials that are coming up."

In nearly every US state, a large mismatch exits between the need for neurologists and neurologic services and the availability of neurologists to provide these services. Over the years, as neurology has shifted from a more diagnostic to therapeutic specialty, there remains a significant demand for specialists across a variety of specialties, both in the clinical and research settings. The shortage of neurologists has been widely known, with several institutions, like the National Institutes of Health (NIH), making concerted efforts to address this problem.

At the 2024 American Neurological Association (ANA) Annual Meeting, held September 14-17, in Orlando, Florida, several clinicians presented in a session highlighting the potential research and career path opportunities major governmental institutions can provide the neurology community. Led by chairs Claire Henchcliffe, MD, DPhil, FANA, and Ali Ezzati, MD, the session covered the resources available for research from the National Institute of Aging (NIA), National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), Department of Defense (DOD), and Veterans Affairs (VA) organizations.

Throughout the meeting, the duo sat down to discuss the significant focus of these organizations on career development, particularly in neurology. Ezzati, director of the Neuroinformatics Program at UC Irvine, spoke on how institutes like the NIA are addressing the shortage of neurologist researchers by offering career development awards and actively encouraging new investigators to apply. Henchcliffe, a movement disorders specialist at UC Irvine, also spoke about the concern with the lack of neurologists to run the growing number of clinical trials, particularly in Alzheimer reseach, where there is a push for precision medicine and drug combinations.