24 Resident Physicians Have Committed to New Program Aimed at Improving Access to Care in Michigan
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 5, 2020
PRESS CONTACT: Amy Hoge (231) 499-5136 or amy.hoge@mhc.org
LANSING, Mich. – MIDOCs, a state-funded program intended to improve access to care in Michigan, recently accepted 24 resident physicians into the program. Each participating resident physician has committed to practice in a primary care health professional shortage area (HPSA) during and after training, and is eligible to receive up to $75,000 in loan repayment.
The 24 new participants (attached below) make up the second cohort of resident physicians in the MIDOCs program. While the number of medical schools in Michigan has increased in recent years – graduating the most doctors in history – the number of Graduate Medical Education residency slots remained capped until the creation of the MIDOCs program. Over the past two years, MIDOCs has created a total of 32 new residency slots across seven high-need specialties in the UP, northern Michigan, mid-Michigan, Detroit, and west Michigan.
“Growing up in a developing country [Ethiopia], I witnessed first-hand the devastating impacts of poverty, health disparities, and civil wars in my community,” said Dr. Beza Sahlie, a physician resident from Wayne State University School of Medicine. “Preventive Medicine is now more important than ever to close the health disparity gap that exists in the US.”
Sahlie is one of MIDOCs’ participating resident physicians from the newest cohort, which is expected to begin practicing in 2024. Upon completion of her residency, Dr. Sahlie plans to work as medical staff for a public health department in order to address the health disparities gaps at a county or regional level.
Of Michigan’s 83 counties, 75 counties have at least partial designation as a primary care HPSA. Studies show resident physicians who train in community settings are nearly three times more likely to practice in an underserved area after graduation.
“Being involved with MIDOCs has been a wonderful experience thus far,” said Dr. Jisselly Salcedo, a resident physician from Central Michigan University College of Medicine. “Not only do I get to do what I love, but I’m also making a difference by providing care to those in need during my training.”
Salcedo is a participating resident physician from the first cohort and is expected to begin practicing as soon as 2023. As a second year psychiatry resident, her specialty is one of the most sought-after in Michigan and nationwide. She is currently training in Saginaw, where the community is able to benefit from her expertise.
Michigan State University College of Human Medicine was able to expand its Rural Psychiatry program in part due to the increased residency slots created through MIDOCs. Four rural track physician residents are currently participating in the MIDOCs program, with two in the first cohort and two in the second.
"Medical students who have a passion for helping others are the best candidates for the MIDOCs program," said Dr. David Overton, Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education and Professor and Chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine. "If you like the idea of treating people who might not otherwise have access to quality care, consider participating in MIDOCs."
MIDOCs is currently seeking residents physicians to participate in the next cohort. Those interested in participating can find more information at michigandocs.org.
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ABOUT MIDOCs
MIDOCs is an initiative of the MIDOCs Consortium, a partnership between Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, Wayne State University School of Medicine, and Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine. MIDOCs was created to address the physician shortage in Michigan by increasing the number of residency slots; to increase access to care in high-need, rural and urban underserved areas throughout the state by retaining residents to practice in these communities after their training; and to help alleviate medical school debt for doctors practicing in Michigan’s medically underserved communities. Learn more at michigandocs.org.
MIDOCs is managed by Michigan Health Council (MHC), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization on a mission to create products and provide services their partners rely on to build health care workforce capacity. Learn more at mhc.org.
Click the link below to download a complete list of the 24 residents who have joined the second MIDOCs cohort.