Southwest Georgia Network

Left Photo: Phoebe Putney Health System Family Medicine Residency Program Director George Fredrick, M.D (left).

Right Photo: Tarah Henderson, D.O. (left)

(Photos by Walter L. Johnson II)

At its monthly board of directors meeting at Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital in Albany Wednesday, Family Medicine Residency Program Director George Fredrick addressed members regarding the state of the program. He says that he and his team have made significant strides towards recruiting new physicians to Southwest Georgia.

“It shows progress, it shows that we’re growing, and how important developing medical education is to developing good healthcare in an area such as Southwest Georgia, which is a difficult area to recruit physicians into,” Fredrick said. “By getting them here to train, and by increasing our numbers, I think that it shows that there is growth, and I think it shows that there is interest in the younger physicians, in coming to (rural) areas instead of just staying in municipal areas or big cities.”

As a member of the largest class to be enrolled in the 25-year history of the program, Tarah Henderson agreed with Fredrick on the progress the program has made in recruiting new residents during that span.

“It was great just to see the ins and outs of the hospital, and seeing of Phoebe Putney,” Henderson said, adding that being a part of eight member Class of 2021 has been a tremendous learning experience thus far.

“It’s been really great, everyone has been helpful,” she said. “The attendees have really been attentive, and they’re really trying to teach you.”

Many factors and strategies go into the selection of residents to the Family Medicine Residency program, including ties to Georgia, whether it comes via family or non-family, Fredrick explained.

“Probably the most effective (strategy to recruit potential residents) is students who have done their training in Georgia,” he said, “because they have some connection with Georgia. We then look at people that have some connection to Georgia, it may that they were born here, it may be that they be that spent some time in Georgia, it may be that they have a spouse or significant other that will be moving to Georgia and getting a job. So we look for those factors through the application process, to try to concentrate on those individuals.”

But sometimes there are students with little or no ties to Georgia who find their way into the residency program, dependent upon what’s found in their background information, as well as expressing a strong interest in practicing medicine in rural areas like Southwest Georgia, Fredrick added.

“Then, you look at people who may have no connection with Georgia, and you look at their personal statement,” Fredrick explained, “and I’ll see that perhaps they have a high interest in rural medicine, or serving different demographics of the population. I think those are the kind of people (that) we want to key on.”

“People that have had that kind of activity will find an interest in (rural medicine) and stay.”

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