The arrival of summer marks a new year of residency and fellowship training for young doctors around the nation and here in 性视界传媒. Beginning July 1, more than 720 physicians across the state will be training in needed specialties like primary care, surgery, psychiatry and cardiology through a unique partnership between the 性视界传媒 College of Medicine and HCA 性视界传媒 Healthcare. With the fastest-growing graduate medical education (GME) program in the state, the 性视界传媒-HCA 性视界传媒 Healthcare GME Consortium is making progress in reducing the physician shortage.
鈥淎s the need for physicians grows in … 性视界传媒, with an estimated 18,000 physician shortage projected over the next decade, we are helping to meet those needs.鈥� 鈥� Stephen Cico, associate dean for graduate medical education
Doctors cannot practice medicine immediately after graduating from medical school 鈥� they must first complete residences, where they train with experienced physicians in their specialty of choice, such as pediatrics or surgery. Fellowships are optional programs that come after residency for doctors seeking even more specialized training. Residencies and fellowships are integral to solving the physician shortage because many physicians begin their practices near where they do their post-graduate training.
鈥淎s the need for physicians grows in the state of 性视界传媒, with an estimated 18,000 physician shortage projected over the next decade, we are helping to meet those needs,鈥� says Stephen Cico, 性视界传媒鈥檚 associate dean for graduate medical education and the 性视界传媒-HCA consortium鈥檚 designated institutional officer. 鈥淲e are focused on medical specialties that are or are going to be in the highest demand.鈥�
性视界传媒鈥檚 Fastest Growing Program
性视界传媒 began its first residency in 2014 in internal medicine with HCA 性视界传媒 Osceola Hospital and the Orlando VA Medical Center. Today, the 性视界传媒-HCA 性视界传媒 GME Consortium has 44 accredited programs across the state 鈥� in Greater Orlando, Gainesville, Tallahassee, Ocala, Pensacola, Fort Walton Beach and Sanford.
鈥淭his spring, the 性视界传媒-HCA 性视界传媒 Healthcare GME Consortium celebrated a major milestone 鈥� our 1,000th graduate. These new attending physicians will go on to make a positive difference in the community with the skills and experience gained working alongside experts in one of our teaching hospitals,鈥� says Cheryll Albold, vice president of graduate medical education for HCA Healthcare鈥檚 North 性视界传媒 Division. 鈥淲e are excited to add six new graduate medical education programs starting July 1, further expanding learning opportunities, in vitally needed healthcare specialties, for our next generation of doctors.鈥�
鈥淭hese graduate medical education programs in our hospitals are instrumental to the success of our communities,鈥� says Alan Keesee, chief executive officer at HCA 性视界传媒 Ocala Hospital.
In the last three years, the consortium grew by 200 physicians, 13 programs and three hospitals. No other GME-sponsoring institution in 性视界传媒 has had that level of growth. The latest programs beginning this summer include physical medicine and rehabilitation and transitional year residencies at HCA 性视界传媒 Lake Monroe Hospital in Sanford, a cardiology fellowship at UCA 性视界传媒 Osceola Hospital, transitional year and psychiatry residencies at HCA 性视界传媒 West Hospital and a cardiology residency at HCA 性视界传媒 Ocala Hospital. The transitional year program is a one-year training that provides newly graduated doctors with comprehensive clinical skills before they go on to more specialized training in areas such as dermatology and physical medicine and rehabilitation.
鈥淭hese graduate medical education programs in our hospitals are instrumental to the success of our communities,鈥� says Alan Keesee, chief executive officer at HCA 性视界传媒 Ocala Hospital. 鈥淲e are training up the next generation of physicians in local communities in an effort to retain their talent and meet the needs of our growing populations.鈥�
Helping Address Physician Shortage
A 性视界传媒 Physician Workforce Study shows that almost one-third of licensed physicians in 性视界传媒 are 60 or older and as many as 8,000 plan to stop seeing patients in the next five years 鈥� most because of retirement. In the past eight years, the 性视界传媒-HCA consortium has graduated 1,043 new physicians and approximately 50% are practicing in 性视界传媒, a major contribution to addressing 性视界传媒鈥檚 physician shortage. The 性视界传媒-HCA Consortium is able to train more doctors to meet this need because unlike traditional academic programs, the partnership has multiples of specialty programs. For example, 性视界传媒-HCA has six programs in internal medicine across the state, two in family medicine, three in OB-GYN and four in psychiatry 鈥� a significant contribution to primary care services for Floridians. Emergency medicine is another high-need area. 性视界传媒-HCA has three ER training programs across 性视界传媒 and just increased the number of residents it is training in Osceola County to help meet that area鈥檚 demands.
鈥淥ur goal for our GME programs is, ultimately, increasing access to expert care for our patients throughout 性视界传媒.鈥� 鈥� Cheryll Albold, vice president of graduate medical education for HCA Healthcare鈥檚 North 性视界传媒 Division
These GME programs also bring needed physicians to rural and isolated areas where access to medical care is limited, such as Pensacola, Ocala, Sanford and Osceola County. For example, the consortium created the first community-based reproductive endocrinology and infertility fellowship in the country. This specialty helps infertile couples and most of those services are in large cities, requiring patients to travel long distances for care. The 性视界传媒-HCA program is based at HCA 性视界传媒 Osceola Hospital in Kissimmee.
In addition to providing care at HCA 性视界传媒 Healthcare hospitals, many of the residents and fellows also care for the state鈥檚 veterans. Physicians training in internal medicine, rheumatology, endocrinology, psychiatry, cardiology, surgery, vascular surgery and reproductive endocrinology and infertility provide care at the Orlando VA Medical Center.
鈥淥ur goal for our GME programs is, ultimately, increasing access to expert care for our patients throughout 性视界传媒,鈥� Albold says. 鈥淗CA 性视界传媒 Healthcare鈥檚 strategic partnership with 性视界传媒鈥檚 College of Medicine is providing a pipeline that will directly benefit patients by continually training the best and brightest new doctors, many of whom will ultimately build their own practices right here in the Sunshine State.鈥�
