TRAVERSE CITY -- National trends show that doctors tend to practice close to where they are trained. This is why Munson Medical Center in Traverse City created the Family Practice Residency Program.
The program is important because in the next decade, new specialists will be needed to take the place of Munson's staff that is currently 55 years and older.
In this week's Your Health Matters 7&4's Melissa Smith and photo-journalist Bob Rhodes introduce us to one resident physician who is not only from northern Michigan but plans to stay here.
For Jake Flynn of Benzie County the choice was simple when it came to deciding where we would end up doing his residency.
"It wasn't until I came back as a medical student and I rotated through Munson and it kind of just clicked. It was kind of a perfect fit," says Flynn.
After college and medical school Flynn rotated through several different hospitals across the country. He wanted to see what other areas had to offer. He ultimately made the decision to come back home and is now a part of Munson's Family Practice Residency Program.
"I realized that these are my people!" says Flynn.
The program was designed to meet the primary care physicians needed in northern Michigan. To break it down, 30% of Munson's current medical staff is 55 years and older and in the next decade new specialists will be needed to take their place.
"The mission of our residency is to train family practice physicians for practice in rural northern Michigan and our success rate with that is about 60% for our graduates," says director of the family practice residency program, Dr. J. William Rawlin.
Rawlin says residents who are from the region much like Flynn, are exactly what the hospital is looking for.
"There is a certainty that little X-factor if you physician was born and raised in northern Michigan and they probably really do get what the way of life is here," says Rawlin.
For Flynn, the choice is still very simple when it comes to deciding what he'll do after his residency...
"This is the place where everyone vacations so it's a pretty easy sell. I think it's one of those things where if you can live up here and make a good living you do. It's a great place and who wouldn't want to live here," says Flynn.
The Munson Family Practice Residency Program also partners with Michigan State University College of Human Medicine and Osteopathic Medicine.
Dr. Rawlin says he hopes a recent Munson expansion, allowing more physicians into the program will also help increase applicants over the years.
