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HELP WANTED; Benefits include an idyllic rural setting, a friendly community and some assistance paying off those hefty medical school loans.

Article Excerpt
Byline: Jessica Zigmond

As the demand for qualified physicians and other healthcare professionals in rural communities outweighs supply, local leaders continue to seek solutions. Rural rotation programs during medical school and residency training, greater attention to finding "homegrown'' talent, and assistance with repaying student loans are among the ways some underserved areas are working to attract and retain medical professionals.

"A big challenge is that when physicians are working in rural areas, they are often alone and isolated,'' says Elaine Mason, director of the West Virginia University Health Sciences Placement Service. "We're working hard at improving that situation.'' One way for areas to keep an adequate number of caregivers is to "grow their own,'' an approach that emphasizes encouraging students to give back to the rural areas of the states where they received their medical education.

Earlier this year, at the annual National Rural Health Association conference, Mason joined Jan Hurst, director of physician placement at the University of Louisville (Ky.) School of Medicine, and Mary Amundson, assistant professor at the Center for Rural Health at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences, to highlight the most important aspects in recruiting and retaining physicians and other healthcare providers in rural communities.

While the programs have slightly different target audiences and are not funded the same way, their missions are similar: to attract physicians to practice in rural communities,...

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