ABSTRACT
Maintaining one’s competence is one of the greatest dilemmas for the rural provider. Rural providers often face more complex, severe, and diverse caseloads; minimal access to enrichment; limited resources; and barriers to their own mental wellness. Rural clinicians are often expected to be generalists with a broad scope of practice to meet the needs of their communities. The generalist in the rural community must have skills to treat a diverse set of presenting problems, all with less support than their urban counterparts. As a result, competency issues can present an ethical dilemma as the provider feels stretched and strained to, and likely beyond, their limits. Knowledge, self-awareness, and professional enrichment can help a clinician avoid issues of incompetence. The author offers some suggestions for how rural clinicians might maintain, and avoid ethical issues related to practicing outside of, their competencies.
