Rural environments require a different sort of medical professional than urban centers. The focus of the Shenandoah Valley Family Practice Residency is to equip new physicians with the skills needed to handle the unique problems that arise in smaller towns. There are one and half times as many primary-care physicians per person in urban areas as there are in rural areas. For specialties like orthopedics, cardiology, and oncology, the number rises to two and half times as many physicians per person. This means that rural doctors tend to cover a wider variety of medical needs and procedures, and need to have broader skills. These kinds of situations and opportunities are what training programs like the Shenandoah Valley Family Practice Residency seek to address. Working in a rural area as a medical professional does have its benefits. The lower cost of living in the country allows for a doctor’s salary to go much farther than it would in a city where rents and mortgages are high, as are the prices of goods. An additional benefit may be lower stress, despite the lower density of physicians to patients. According to one survey, 61 percent of rural physicians have said that the pace is slower at their practices in the country that it was in the city. And doctors in rural areas tend to know their patients better, leading to greater professional and personal satisfaction.
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AuthorOverseen by Dr. Frank Dennehy, Shenandoah Valley Family Practice Residency Program offers opportunities for students who are interested in family medicine. Archives
November 2021
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