Rural Residency Planning and Development Program - Project Title: Payson, AZ Rural Track Programs in Internal and Family Medicine Applicant Organization: The University of Arizona Eligible Entity type: non-profit, institution of higher education Address: PO Box 210158B, Rm 538, Tucson, AZ 85721-0158 Project Director Name & Contact Information: Sharry Veres, M.D., Phone: (602) 827-3032 Email: sveres@arizona.edu Website: https://phoenixmed.arizona.edu/fcpm/veres Program Director Name & Contact Information: Robert Raschke, MD Phone: (602) 827-2078 Email: rrashke@arizona.edu Program Pathway: General Primary Care Residency Specialty Area: Family Medicine and General Internal Medicine Residency Format: Rural Track Program Accredited Rural Track Program: (ACGME RTP Type 1) Rural Target Area: Payson, AZ Funding Amount Requested: $750,000 Program Sustainability Option: Medicare GME & AZ Medicaid GME Projected Total Number of Residents: 12 Expected ACGME Accreditation and Residency Matriculation Dates: 10/26/23 accreditation and 7/1/24 matriculation date Funding Priority Points Requested: Priority 1 (2 points) PROJECT ABSTRACT Brief Overview: The proposed project will result in two type 1 Rural Training Programs, one in Internal Medicine and one in Family Medicine, in the Payson, Arizona community in Gila County. Payson is a rural community with a HPSA score of 19, currently serving as a successful Longitudinal Integrated Curriculum track site for the University of Arizona, College of Medicine Phoenix students. The program will be sponsored by the University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix, in Academic Affiliation Agreement with Banner Health. Banner Payson Medical Center, a critical access hospital, will be the primary site for most of the residency training, and the Banner University Medical Center Phoenix, will be used for most supplemental training. The Banner Payson hospital is a 1.5-hour drive from Phoenix, and offers a wide array of services, including maternity and newborn care. At full complement, this project will result in 12 primary care residents training at this site, 4 graduating per year, to help create new primary care physicians who are prepared to practice in rural Arizona. Objectives and outcomes: The supporting goals and objectives for the development of these two type 1 Rural Training Programs include: 1) Recruitment and appointments of program directors and supporting faculty for both residency programs, 2) ACGME accreditation for both Internal Medicine and Family Medicine programs, 3) Successful recruitment, match and matriculation for both programs, 4) High-quality broad-spectrum rural training for residents in the program, 5) An Increase in the number of physicians joining and retained in rural communities in Payson, Gila County and other parts of Arizona The Chair of Family, Community and Preventive Medicine at the University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix will oversee the project with the UA/Banner Designated Institutional Official. A coordinator will be hired to assist with the project organization and program development tasks. A team of stakeholders will continue to meet at regular 2–4-week intervals, following a workplan with a timeline and tasks needed to recruit and onboard faculty and program directors, complete curricular details, solidify continuity clinic plans, apply for ACGME accreditation, build recruitment strategy, successfully recruit and onboard resident physicians, assist with housing needs in both rural and urban sites, and successfully build a cohesive rural education culture. Target outcomes include ACGME accreditation for both programs by September 2023, recruitment for both programs in 2023/2024, and matriculation of first resident classes in July 2024, yielding the first year of graduating residents in July 2027.
