Rural Residency Planning and Development Program - Eligible Entity/Facility Type: Rural, nonprofit acute care hospital Program Pathways: Maternal Health and Obstetrics Pathway Residency Residency Medical Specialties: Family Medicine with Obstetrics Focus Residency Format: New Rural Track Program Sponsoring Institution Name, Location, and ACGME Sponsor Program Code: University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria, Peoria, IL, 8001600128 Rural Target County: Knox County Funding Amount Requested: $749,845 Program Sustainability Option: Option 1 - Rural hospital "new" residency program Projected Total Number of Residents: 12 Expected ACGME Accreditation and First Resident Matriculation Dates: Spring 2026 Accreditation, July 2027 Residency Matriculation Funding Priority Points Requested: Maternal health Recent HRSA Awards Received in Last 5 Years, by Program Name & Grant Number: None at OSF St. Mary Medical Center. OSF Healthcare System was awarded a HRSA-20-118 Advanced Nursing Education Nuse Practitioner Residency Integration Program (ANE-NPRIP) grant (FAIN# T5839873); a HRSA-21-142 Rural Health Clinic Vaccine Confidence Program grant (FAIN# G2943191); and a HRSA-23-009 Advanced Nursing Education Nurse Practitioner Residency and Fellowship (ANE-NPRF) Program grant (FAIN# T5949646). OSF Healthcare System was also a winner of HRSA's Promoting Pediatric Primary Prevention (P4) Challenge in 2022. OSF St. Mary Medical Center (SMMC) is a rural hospital within the OSF Healthcare System located in Galesburg, Illinois. We are requesting $749,845 of RRPD funds for the start-up of a new family medicine residency with the maternal health and obstetrics pathway. The goal of this project is to develop a robust training program that develops residents with experience treating mothers and families in rural, underserved areas. Over the past decade, four hospitals in Knox County and surrounding areas served by SMMC have closed their labor and delivery programs. SMMC, along with OSF ambulatory sites, is now the only source of maternal health services for patients in this area. Broadly, there is a shortage of primary care physicians in the county, the state of Illinois, and the country at large. Due to this shortage, access to care across populations, but especially prenatal and maternal care, is severely limited. Additionally, SMMC is located in a HRSA-designated Medically Underserved Population (low income) in a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA). There is a great need for rural family medicine physicians, especially those with obstetrics training, in our area; we hope to close that gap partially through the development of this program and retention of residents after graduation. Broadly, providing residents with experience in our rural community will equip them with the tools to treat a variety and large volume of patients. The OSF St. Mary Medical Center Rural Family Medicine Residency program will train 12 residents with matriculation beginning in July 2027. Residents will serve patients in Galesburg and surrounding areas during their time in the program. They will spend at least 80% of their time at SMMC and will also have selected rotations at other OSF hospitals and at local ambulatory locations for experiences including cancer care, nephrology, and other specialties. There are also opportunities to collaborate with practices in adjacent counties as needed for additional rotations. We will leverage the expertise of existing healthcare facilities within the OSF system, especially those with existing programs such as Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria and St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington, to develop a robust residency program. Finally, because the program will be sponsored by University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria, we will also have the ability to rely on our partners within the medical school to support the clinical and didactic needs of the program.
