Health Professions

Physicians, Dentists, and Registered Nurses

Physicians

In 2004, there were 39,860 active physicians licensed to practice in Florida for a ratio of 229 physicians for every 100,000 Florida residents (Table 21).

Sources: Medical Quality Assurance, Florida Department of Health (2004); Border States includes data from Arizona Medical Board (2004), and Arizona Board of Osteopathic Examiners in Medicine and Surgery (2004), California Department of Consumer Affairs (2004), New Mexico Health Policy Commission (2003), and Texas State Board of Medical Examiners (2003); U.S. from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Bureau of Health Professions (2000).

• The physician to population ratio in Florida was similar to the Border States ratio of 219 per 100,000 and lower than the U.S. ratio of 278 per 100,000 population.
• Physicians in Florida were primarily Non-Hispanic White (69 percent), with only 3.9 percent of physicians reported as Black/African-American, and 13.3 percent reported as Hispanic/Latino(a) (Table 22).
• The average age of physicians in Florida was 50.0. Thirty-two percent of physicians in Florida were approaching retirement age (ages 55 and over) in 2004 (Table 23).
• Seventy-nine percent of physicians in the State of Florida were male (Table 24).
• There were 69 primary care physicians per 100,000 population in Florida. There were 1.3 specialty physicians for every primary care physician in the State (Table 25).

Dentists

In 2004, there were 8,651 active dentists licensed to practice in Florida for a ratio of 50 dentists for every 100,000 Florida residents (Table 26).

Sources: Medical Quality Assurance, Florida Department of Health (2004); Border States includes data from Arizona State Board of Dental Examiners (2004), California Department of Consumer Affairs (2004), New Mexico Health Policy Commission (2003), and Texas State Board of Dental Examiners (2003); U.S. from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Bureau of Health Professions (2000).

• The dentist to population ratio in Florida was lower than both the Border States ratio of 65 per 100,000 and the U.S. ratio of 61 per 100,000 poulation.
• Dentists in Florida were primarily Non-Hispanic White (76 percent), with only 2.4 percent of dentists reported as Black/African-American, and 14.0 percent reported as Hispanic/Latino(a) (Table 27).
• The average age of dentists in Florida was 48.9. Thirty-two percent of dentists in Florida were approaching retirement age (ages 55 and over) in 2004 (Table 28).
• Eighty percent of dentists in Florida were male (Table 29).

Registered Nurses

In 2004, there were 163,360 active registered nurses (RNs) licensed to practice in Florida for a ratio of 939 nurses for every 100,000 Florida residents (Table 30).

Sources: Medical Quality Assurance, Florida Department of Health (2004); Border States includes data from Arizona State Board of Nursing (2004), California Department of Consumer Affairs (2004), New Mexico Health Policy Commission (2003), and Texas Board of Nurse Examiners (2003); U.S. from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Bureau of Health Professions (2000).

• The RN to population ratio for Florida was higher than both the Border States ratio of 692 per 100,000 and the U.S. ratio of 782 per 100,000 population.
• Registered nurses in Florida were primarily Non-Hispanic White (78 percent), with only 10.0 percent of nurses reported as Black/African-American, and 5.3 percent reported as Hispanic/Latino(a) (Table 31). Nationally, 86 percent of RNs were Non-Hispanic White, 5.1 percent were Black/African-American, and 2.2 percent were Hispanic/Latino(a).^[36]
• The average age of RNs in Florida was 47.2. Twenty-six percent of RNs in Florida were approaching retirement age (ages 55 and over) in 2004 (Table 32). Nationally, it was estimated that 14 percent of RNs were in these age brackets.^[36]
• In Florida, 9.1 percent of RNs statewide were male (Table 33). This compared to 5.9 percent of nurses nationally.^[36]