A university rural teaching practice: a model for collaboration in rural health care

After nearly two decades of Federal, State and local incentives, primary medical services in rural areas remain for short of target. Numerous demonstration projects supported by public and private funds have had some success but models with both broad replicability and independence of external start-up and/or maintenance support are rare. The Department of Family Medicine at the State University of New York at Buffalo has established a novel collaborative network of public and private organizations to emplace a four-physician rural group practice concurrently accomplishing three major goals: high quality primary and specialty medical services to two medically underserved populations; enriched training opportunities for students, residents, and fellows; and financial viability. Beyond meeting regional needs, however, the components and nature of the collaborative effort indicate reproducibility in many communities throughout the country. To emphasize exportable features we will focus on: opportunities, operational strategies, financial feasibility, training advantages, and impact.