The Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine at Marshall University received a family medicine “Top Ten” award from the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) in April for being one of the nation’s top schools in the percentage of graduates entering family medicine residencies.
Based on a three-year average ending in October 2011, AAFP reports 16.8 percent of Marshall medical school graduates have chosen family medicine residencies. The average places the school as number six in the country.
“Marshall’s school of medicine has consistently found itself in this top ranking because we are committed to educating students about the importance of primary care and more specifically, family medicine,” said Dr. John Walden, chair of the department of Family and Community Health. “We have long been aware of the critical nature of educating doctors for rural America and remain steadfast in our efforts to promote this very important specialty.”
Dr. Sarah Chouinard, president of the West Virginia Academy of Family Physicians and a 1998 graduate of Marshall’s medical school, echoed Walden’s assessment.
“Family docs are THE key players in our nation’s ability to reform our healthcare system. With the changing business of medicine to include technology and quality-driven outcome measures, we need well-educated, engaged family docs to be present in our communities,”Chouinard said. “Marshall trained me to be a family doctor who understands the value in serving our rural West Virginia communities.”
The awards were presented during a ceremony held April 27th at the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine Annual Spring Conference in Seattle. The Top Ten Awards were created more than a decade ago by the AAFP to promote the goal of having more U.S. medical school graduates become family medicine physicians.
