Dear editor,

On March 30, Gov. Robert Bentley will sign a proclamation declaring March 30, 2016, Doctors’ Day in Alabama. This day formally recognizes Alabama’s more than 9,500 licensed physicians serving millions of residents through private practice, in hospitals, in research, and in other health care facilities.

Doctors’ Day in Alabama is a project sponsored by the Medical Association of the State of Alabama and the Alabama Department of Public Health to celebrate physicians serving in our communities.

The practice of medicine is a special calling for any physician — from the specialist to the general practitioner to those who have served or are serving in the armed forces.

Physicians study and train for many years, work long and unpredictable hours, and cope with often conflicting demands of work and family life to serve the needs of their communities.

Although they are healers first, Alabama’s physicians not only contribute to patient health, but also to the state’s economy.

According to a study by the American Medical Association, each Alabama physician supports an average of 10 jobs — contributing to 83,095 jobs statewide — for an average of $1.3 million in positive economic input and a total of $11.2 billion in economic impact statewide.

Physicians often lead patients and families through some of life’s most challenging moments. They serve in hospitals and other facilities.

Research by physicians produces tremendous breakthroughs in curing and treating life-threating diseases.

Students attending Alabama’s medical and osteopathic schools train to become the next generation of leaders in medicine, instilled with the drive to help solve some of the greatest health care challenges facing medicine today.

Doctors’ Day in Alabama is one day set aside to thank our physicians for the work they do each day to make the health of our residents and our state better. If you see your physician on March 30, help us celebrate Doctors’ Day in Alabama by telling your doctor how much he or she means to you.

 

Mark Jackson

Executive Director

Medical Association of the State of Alabama