WWAMI Medical Education in Idaho Current Status And Expansion

37 Years of Medical Education UWSOM and the University of Idaho have a proud 37 year partnership for medical education in Idaho Part of the statewide mission assigned to UI by the State Board of Education: “The university is also responsible for regional medical and veterinary medical education programs in which the state of Idaho participates.”

#1 in Primary Care Medicine & Medical Research Through WWAMI, Idaho is already partnered with the #1 medical school in the nation for primary care and rural physician training (15 years running) and the #1 public medical school in the country for total research funding ($1 billion in 2007)

An unbeaten record of success 50% return rate for Idaho WWAMI graduates. The national return rate average for states with their own medical schools is just 39% When you add the other WWAMI graduates from MT, WA, and AK who have set up practice in Idaho, the State’s return on investment goes up to 70%.

A research partnership that pays Idaho UI WWAMI faculty bring in over $11 million dollars of NIH grant funding annually to Idaho For example: the UI-WWAMI $16M, 5 year NIH-funded INBRE Program supports biomedical research at all of Idaho’s colleges and universities Current Idaho WWAMI NIH research funding is already greater than in states with their own community-based medical schools

An established distributed medical education model WWAMI already has a well established state-wide network of physicians (258), clinics, and hospitals, both urban and rural. Idaho WWAMI students can already complete 3 of their 4 years of medical training in Idaho. All of Idaho’s GME programs are WWAMI-affiliated or UWSOM programs.

Idaho’s Current GME Training WWAMI-affiliated Family Medicine residencies in Boise, Pocatello, and Caldwell (all 3 years) Idaho Internal Medicine residency track at Boise VA (1st and 2nd year UWSOM residents) New Psychiatry residency track at Boise hospitals (3rd and 4th year UWSOM residents) Pediatric Residents (2 month rotation with six UWSOM residents/year)

CURRENT WWAMI MEDICAL EDUCATION SITES IN IDAHO Moscow St. Maries Grangeville Salmon Driggs Mountain Home Shoshone Malad City Preston Montpelier Blackfoot Emmett Nampa Orofino Plummer Payette Arco Cottonwood Weiser Coeur d’Alene Bonners Ferry Sun Valley Meridian Rexburg Sandpoint McCall Hailey R/UOP (Rural/Underserved Opportunities Program) WWAMI Practice Sites Pocatello Idaho Falls Caldwell Clinical Clerkships (Third & Fourth-Years) WRITE (WWAMI Rural Integrated Training Experience) Rupert American Falls Twin Falls Downey Fort Hall GME Community Rotations WWAMI Program Offices Graduate Medical Education (GME)/Residencies Boise

MGT Medical Feasibility Study – Summary of Findings - 7.5 “each alternative represents a straightforward approach [but] the number of variations…is infinite” “should the state choose a new medical program to be hosted by one university, the university should work with WWAMI to develop a long-term… relationship with UW. Idaho has made a significant investment in WWAMI…Idaho should continue to capitalize on this relationship” “one university should be first among equals to provide strong leadership…[and] work with UWSOM…[for a] long-term contractual and financial relationship”

WWAMI’s Vision for Expanded Medical Education Expand the WWAMI program to all four years of medical education in Idaho, under UI leadership and continuing UWSOM accreditation Year 1 at UI-Moscow; Years 2 through 4 in Boise and regional medical sites across Idaho Develop new partnerships between WWAMI, UI, and BSU, ISU, & Boise VAMC Support GME expansion by establishing a WWAMI GME office in Boise

Step-wise Expansion Utilizing Existing Resources And Cooperation With Other Institutions Step 1: support Idaho WWAMI feasibility planning for a 4-year Medical Program in Idaho, including operating budget, capital budget, facility needs analysis, curriculum, students costs and debt loads, and implementation timeline. Step 2: Fund an Idaho WWAMI GME office in Boise; appoint state-wide GME Advisory Board for Idaho; expand current residencies and develop new Idaho residency options.

Implementation Steps, cont. Step 3: increase current WWAMI medical student seats in Idaho to 40 new students per year (160 total students in medical school). Step 4: Complete development of 2nd year medical program in Boise, under UI-WWAMI leadership and in partnership with Boise hospitals, the VAMC, residencies, BSU, ISU, and community physicians.

Implementation Steps, cont. Step 5: expand clinical training sites across Idaho, particularly eastern and northern regions. Step 6: Once all 4 years are established in Idaho and GME has been expanded, create the Idaho College of Medicine, a partnership among universities, residencies, hospitals, and physicians, under UWSOM’s continuing accreditation.