Problem statement: Little is known about how well various types of rural-focused family medicine residency training programs, particularly osteopathic residencies, produce physicians for rural practice.

Project goals: Aim 1 is to create a master file of rural family medicine training programs organized by the key characteristics of their rural focus. This residency program-level file will be used to develop a comprehensive typology of program models based on duration of rural training, program mission, and breadth of training in rural-relevant skills. The master file will also include an individual-level database of information on program graduates. Aim 2 is to identify the graduates' early practice locations and characteristics for comparisons of the effectiveness of distinct program models in producing physicians who practice in rural areas, including shortage areas and safety net facilities.

Methods: To construct the program-level database, we will use in-house residency program databases created for related projects, FREIDA Online®, the American Osteopathic Association "Opportunities" database, Web searches, and new data collected directly from programs. For the individual graduate database, we will match graduates identified by programs with outcome data in the AMA Masterfile and other secondary data sources. Statistical tests (e.g., one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA)) will be conducted to compare the outcomes of distinct program models.

Publications

• Do Residencies That Aim to Produce Rural Family Physicians Offer Relevant Training?
  Journal Article
  WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 09/2016
  Examines the rural-centric family medicine residencies, their training locations, and rurally relevant skills training provided. Rural training can promote rural practice, but the number of family medicine residencies with a rural focus, geographic distribution of training, and training content are poorly understood.
• Outcomes of Rural-Centric Residency Training to Prepare Family Medicine Physicians for Rural Practice
  Policy Brief
  WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 03/2016
  Among those with eight or more weeks of rural training, no single program characteristic or model offered sustained advantages over any other type in producing high yields to rural practice.