Bolstering the rural physician workforce in underserved communities: Are Rural Residency Planning and Development...

Area of Science:

• Rural Health
• Medical Education
• Health Workforce Development

Background:

• Rural areas face significant health disparities and physician shortages.
• Rural Residency Planning and Development (RRPD) programs aim to train physicians in rural settings.
• Understanding the characteristics of RRPD sites is crucial for future program development.

Purpose of the Study:

• Describe characteristics of Rural Residency Planning and Development (RRPD) Programs.
• Compare counties with and without RRPD programs.
• Identify potential locations for future RRPD program development.

Main Methods:

• Study included 67 rural sites in 40 counties across 24 US states.
• Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used.
• Key predictors analyzed included population, primary care physicians (PCP) per 10,000, and Social Vulnerability Index (SVI).

Main Results:

• Most RRPD grantees were family medicine programs affiliated with medical schools.
• RRPD counties were more populous, denser, and had a higher percentage of non-White or Hispanic residents compared to non-RRPD counties.
• Higher population and PCP ratio strongly predicted RRPD county status; SVI was a weaker predictor.

Conclusions:

• RRPD sites are in rural counties with sufficient population and physician supply, yet also exhibit social vulnerability.
• These "sweet spot" counties are ideal for training programs addressing health disparities.
• Targeting similar counties for funding can help mitigate health workforce maldistribution.