The shortage of physicians in Arkansas has become more acute, as many doctors have retired or left the profession because of stress or illness from COVID-19. Despite being one of the most challenging times imaginable, in the middle of the pandemic, Conway Regional Health System launched its family residence program and welcomed its first class in July 2020.
Since then, it welcomed a second class in 2021. And March of this year saw the third class of residents enrolled for a total of 12, four per class, of family resident students. The third class will begin training in July. These physicians are going through an accredited training program that will prepare them to practice on their own when they finish their residence.
“In Conway— the city of colleges — education is a part of the fabric of our community,” said Matt Troup, president and CEO of Conway Regional. “Because of this, a family medicine residency program made sense for our health system and for our community. Our program will train a generation of physicians who are critical thinkers, compassionate providers, skilled clinicians and future leaders in medicine.”
Besides benefiting patients, the residency programs allow medical school students to finish their education in Arkansas rather than leaving for a position in another state.
Dr. Dylan Cruz
(Photos provided by Conway Regional)
“I am thankful to be part of the Conway Regional team,” said Dylan Cruz, D.O., a family medicine resident. “Everyone here is committed to providing high-quality, compassionate health care services. It’s a great organization to be a part of. I chose family medicine because of its variety. Whether it’s different ages, different patient care or different settings, I felt that it gave me an opportunity to care for a family over a long period of time.”
Rebekah Fincher, chief administrative officer and designated institutional officer for Conway Regional, said the programs were started due to seeing many Arkansas medical students graduates who did not have the opportunity to match with a residency in Arkansas, combined with the need for more primary care physicians throughout the state. She said this program will allow Conway Regional to increase health care access by producing exceptionally trained physicians who are more likely to stay in Arkansas and provide care than if they did their residency in another state.
“During the resident recruitment process, we emphasized that our program would be different,” Fincher said. “We made three commitments that we reaffirm each day. First, we would provide a high-quality graduate medical education experience, preparing residents to become successful family medicine physicians. Secondly, we would train a generation of physicians who are critical thinkers, compassionate providers, skilled clinicians and future leaders in medicine. And lastly, we would take care of one another, personally and professionally. Conway Regional is a place where we treat one another like family, we challenge one another, and work to provide exceptional care. That’s exactly what we intend to do for our residents.”
Dr. Reagan Garber
Reagan Garber, class of 2024, said everyone from Troup to other doctors and nurses have welcomed the class with open arms.
“I don’t really think a lot of residents get that with their programs,” Garber said. “Most residents aren’t having dinner at the CEO’s house.”
Dr. Sarah Robertson
Family Medicine Residency Program Director Sarah Robertson advises residents that, “you will learn to practice family medicine in a changing health care climate while simultaneously enriching your abilities to make interpersonal connections with patients and their families. On your journey from graduated medical student to family physician, your growth will be exponential. At times, it will be joyful and, at others, it will test your limits. You will be encouraged, but you will also be challenged.”
Robertson said the goal is for family medicine residents to develop the necessary skills to practice independently as a caring, lifelong learning physician.
“The goal of our program is to equip future family physicians with the knowledge, experience and skills necessary to provide exemplary patient care and positively impact the full spectrum of family practice health care delivery,” Robertson said.
Another unique component is Conway’s rural track family medicine program. Conway Regional sponsors two residents annually with years two and three at Dardanelle Regional Medical Center. When full, the program will have six residents and focus on training physicians who have a passion for family medicine for rural areas.
In 2021, Conway Regional received accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, and has since been on a journey to establish its Internal Medicine Residency program. That program has five internal medicine residents in each class, for a total of 15.
“This year, we will provide more Arkansas medical students who graduate in our state with the opportunity to match with an internal medicine residency in Arkansas,” Fincher said. “This, combined with a need for more internal medicine physicians throughout our state, will allow us to increase health care access by producing exceptionally trained physicians who, we hope, will stay in Arkansas to provide care.”
On March 18 (Match Day), Conway Regional welcomed five internal medicine residents to the inaugural class of the Internal Medicine Residency program, which begins on July 1.
Dr. Greg Kendrick
“Our team is excited about this new facet of Conway Regional,” said Greg Kendrick, M.D., Internal Medicine Residency Program Director. “We are committed to equipping our internal medicine residents with experience and skills to be great clinicians. There is a need for internal medicine physicians in our state, and I believe our hospital is uniquely qualified to train young doctors on their path to independent practice.”
When all three programs are filled, Conway Regional will be training a total of 33 residents.
