Aberdeen hospital starts program for new medical school graduates

MONROE COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Aberdeen does have one advantage over some other cities its size – a successful local hospital.

But, being in a more rural area, Monroe Regional Hospital sometimes has difficulty attracting staff.

Program Coordinator Erinn Benge hopes a new program will change that.

“The residency program is to bring physicians to rural areas. When medical students graduate from med school, they need to finish a med school program where they can learn to practice on their own. That is where we come in and we are a family medicine,” said Benge.

Benge said bringing in more physicians has widespread benefits.

“It is indescribable, we are helping these students find a place in the community and learn how to work with physicians. They are learning from the best,” said Benge.

“Bringing physicians to rural communities is helping boost the economy, it is helping bring more medicine and bring more providers to small communities. That is what is needed the most,” said Benge.

The program has been in the works for a while.

“Our president of the company is a retired surgeon, and his dream was to bring medicine to rural communities. This has been in fruition for many years, and after the struggle of COVID, we finally have that after five years of planning and putting it together, and we finally got our accreditation.,” said Benge.

The long-term goal is to help both patients and doctors.

“The main thing that we are striving for at Boa Vida is the quality of care, and we are really striving to learn the patient and see them from beginning to end. We are trying to incorporate that with our residents and teach them how to treat the patients as themselves and not just another number,” said Benge.

Monroe Regional Hospital is looking for more residents to join its program. If you would like to join, you can find more information about the program on the company’s website.

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