Data shows UNMC addresses state’s physician needs

A recent report by the Association of American Medical Colleges ranks UNMC high in the number of college of medicine graduates who practice in primary care, as well as the number of graduates practicing in rural areas and graduates who remained in the state of Nebraska to practice.

The AAMC Missions Management Tool, which provides annual reports, tracked students who graduated from UNMC between 2008-2013 and are now 10-15 years into their careers, said Kelly Caverzagie, MD, associate dean for educational strategy and learning environment for the UNMC College of Medicine.  

“We are proud to be well above the 90^th percentile for the number of graduates practicing in primary care and the number of graduates practicing in rural areas, both of which have continued to increase over the past five years,” Dr. Caverzagie said.

UNMC also was in the 83^rd percentile among all medical school in the nation for its medical graduates who stay in the state.

Dr. Caverzagie credited the numbers to UNMC’s “continued dedication to producing doctors from the state of Nebraska.

“We’re not talking about recent graduates who are going into residency,” he said. “These are doctors who have been in practice 10 to 15 years. Of the doctors that graduated from the UNMC College of Medicine back then, 31.8% are practicing in primary care and 42% are practicing in the state.”

In short, UNMC is transforming medical care in Nebraska.

“We’re looking now at a class that is 15 years out in the world, and they are hitting the benchmarks that we were hoping they would hit,” Dr. Caverzagie said. “We are doing what we want to do. Nebraska needs doctors, especially primary care doctors, and it needs doctors who practice in rural areas. These are the areas of emphasis for our university. And we see here, by these numbers, that this is working.”

Christopher Kratochvil, MD, interim vice chancellor of external affairs, said he was pleased by the AAMC numbers.

“We are a state institution and are guided by the mission to improve lives and health, not only nationally and globally, but especially of our fellow Nebraskans,” Dr. Kratochvil said. “These numbers, while a snapshot in time, underscore our commitment to that mission.”