Flagstaff has been ranked 12th in the country as one of the best places for physicians and surgeons. GoodCall, a South Carolina-based information exchange, ranks everything from learning institutions to businesses.
Cities were ranked by salaries, affordable housing, job availability, the number of malpractice suit payouts per 1,000 residents and the number of hospitals in the area.
The number one best place in the country for physicians and surgeons according the report was Cape Girardeau, Illinois. Ranking just above Flagstaff was Green Bay,
Wisconsin. Out of the top 10, four were located in Texas.
Someone who can speak to the attractiveness of Flagstaff for doctors is Dr. Henry Poore, who has practiced locally for 53 years.
“I like the area. The hospital is good and there is a good medical staff,” he said. “My home is here. I love the climate.”
Dr. Poore arrived in Flagstaff in 1962. There were 14 hospital beds, seven doctors and 9,000 people, he said.
Poore runs a free clinic for the homeless and indigent and recently opened an additional office.
Dr. David Caparrelli, who arrived about a year ago, said Flagstaff attracted him because it is a good place to raise children. And though it is small, it treats about a million patients a year from surrounding areas. Plus, Flagstaff Medical Center is the only Level One Trauma Center in the area, so serious cases in Northern Arizona can be taken to get treatment there. FBN
By Patty McCormac, FBN