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Real Stories from Rural Students and Residents
Interested in rural practice? In these stories, medical students and residents share their experiences of training in rural areas. Read about their insights, passions, and the advantages or rural training.
Archive of Blog Posts
This series of blog posts from 2011-2016 were written by students as part of the RTT Technical Assistance Program, a grant-funded program from the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy – hyperlinks work to the current site and the left side of the page links to a complete archive.
- Full-spectrum care is important to rural communities
- Strong physician-patient relationships save lives
- Rural family medicine training provides access to high-quality, full-spectrum care
Click/tap here to see more rural stories
- Quality training at the Dixon Rural Training Track Family Medicine Residency Program
- Full-spectrum care and high-quality training at the Swift River Rural Training Track
- Finding the right fit at the Dixon Rural Training Track Family Medicine Residency Program
- True realization of ‘family’ in Family Medicine
- Rural medicine provides more than expected for physicians and patients alike
- Physician involvement provides excellent rural training opportunity
- Broad spectrum of rural healthcare offered significant learning opportunities
- Exposure to rural training brings about change of heart
- Genuine caring is at the heart of rural family medicine
- Rural family medicine is about creating relationships
- Finding a sense of community in rural family medicine
- Rural rotation provides wide variety of experiences
- Rural medicine provides strong sense of family
- Outstanding physician leaders make for a positive rural training experience
- Rural residency program staff are knowledgeable and friendly
- Building strong physician-patient relationships in rural primary care
- Rural residency training brings awareness of issues around access to healthcare services
- The rural experience and my dedication to underserved and rural populations
- The importance of relationship building in rural family practice
- Physicians do all that they can, even if the patient is unwilling
- Rural rotation brings new life experiences
- Patients are patients: A reflection on experience
- A true rural rotation
- Full spectrum family practice in a friendly environment
- A place like no other
- Rural rotation fosters appreciation for sense of community
- Finding the full spectrum of care
- A journey to discover rural practice
- Some lessons, medical school can’t teach
- Expectations of excellence
- The Dynamics of Rural Training
- From dread to delight
- Real stories from rural residency
Videos
Highlights the North Colorado Family Medicine Wray Rural Training Track program where residents spend the bulk of their 2nd and 3rd years working in a critical care hospital and clinic in Wray Colorado, a town of roughly 2500 people.
Residents from the Baraboo Rural Training Track Program talk about their family medicine training in rural Wisconsin
See what other residents have to say about rural family medicine!
Adrianne Westmoreland, DO, As a PGY3
Seneca Lakes Family Medicine Residency Program, Seneca, SC
This community, this residency, and this type of medicine are exactly what I hoped for when I pursued rural family practice. The opportunity to provide care for an entire family – from the baby I delivered, to the grandmother I transitioned to hospice care – is an invaluable opportunity to make ourselves part of a greater whole.
Rachel Hartline, MD, As a PGY2
Baraboo Family Medicine Residency Program, Baraboo, WI
What I love about my rural training site is that it allows me the flexibility and connections of a well-known and respected department of family medicine as the procedural and high-risk opportunities of rural family medicine. It is truly the best of both worlds! I am so happy with my program.
Matt Kaiser, MD, As an R1
Spokane Family Medicine Residency, Colville, WA
Rural medicine really provides a practice setting that meets at the confluence of my values and interests. I would like to provide care to a population that may not have easy access to physicians.
Katrina Gardner, MD, As an R2
Spokane Family Medicine Residency, Colville, WA
It was there that I met the kind of doctors that I would like to become. They were so capable, compassionate and hardworking. I think of them every day as I continue my training as a resident. I knew I wanted to continue my rural training during residency because it is one of the few places I could get full-spectrum family medicine training that would allow me to do C-sections, gynecological procedures, colonoscopies, emergency care, intensivist medicine, etc.