Today@Sam Article

Grant Funding Bolsters Family Residency Partnership

Nov. 3, 2023
SHSU Media Contact: Mikah Boyd

Operating in a rural-population-designated-area, Huntsville Memorial Hospital (HMH) received a $5.7 million Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA) grant to fund the newly launched Family Medicine Residency program at the Huntsville Rural Health Clinic (HRHC) in collaboration with Sam Houston State University College of Osteopathic Medicine (SHSU-COM). The grant provides funding for the program for the next four years.

As a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agency, HRSA provides grant funding to support equitable health care to people who are geographically isolated and economically or medically vulnerable. By supporting health infrastructure, including training of health professionals, HRSA’s mission is to help distribute health professionals to areas where they are needed most. 

Thomas J. Mohr, DO, dean of SHSU-COM emphasized the COM’s similar mission of improving primary care access and meeting the healthcare workforce needs in East Texas. 

“With the launch of the Family Medicine Residency program in Huntsville, SHSU-COM is the only medical school in the state with a three-year rural residency training program funded by the HRSA Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education grant program,” Mohr said. “The targeted impact of rural residency programs is for new family physicians to choose to practice in the area where they have completed their residency and become established.”

Four family medicine residents began the three-year Family Medicine Residency program in July. Resident doctors rotate through required clinical rotations for training in a wide range of clinical venues. The cornerstone of the COM’s program is the clinic site or rural health clinic (RHC). Due to the unique needs in rural healthcare, these residents are exposed to creative and innovative approaches to care for their patients, according to Marsha Sellner, assistant dean of graduate medical education. 

The inaugural SHSU-COM cohort of student doctors in Conroe, Texas, will graduate in May 2024 and are currently in the process of applying to residency programs across the country. Some have applied to the Huntsville Family Medicine Residency program, but that does not guarantee a match. March 15 is nationally known as Match Day when fourth-year student doctors across the nation are notified of the residency program they will train in to become a licensed family medicine physician in their specialty.

SHSU-COM’s Family Medicine Residency program in Huntsville is accredited to add four resident doctors each year for a total of 12 by 2025. HRSA grant funds are utilized to pay the salaries of the resident physicians and support the educational infrastructure of the program.

HMH Chief Executive Officer Patrick Shannon said, “Establishing a residency program in Huntsville benefits the community in many ways. Family medicine residents will be prepared with the tools, education and support needed to become engaged, effective clinicians and patient advocates for Walker County residents.”

Mohr, who recently was named Educator of the Year by the American Osteopathic Foundation said osteopathic medical schools are leaders in setting up residency programs in rural areas.

“It’s a win-win situation,” Mohr said. “Residents get training, and rural areas get additional healthcare workers to provide comprehensive healthcare from birth to end-of-life care. Improving access to quality healthcare for rural  areas is a primary focus of our mission as a medical school.”

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