Workforce shortage for general surgeons: results from the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Track (SSAT) surgeon shortage survey.

Background Population shifts among surgeons and the general populous will contribute to a predicted general surgeon shortage by 2020. The Public Policy and Advocacy Committee of the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract designed and conducted a survey to assess perceptions and possible solutions from important stakeholders: practicing surgeons of the society, general surgery residents, and medical students.