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Official Launch of New Tufts/MMC and UNE Programs to Address Critical Shortages
With inaugural classes beginning at the Tufts/Maine Medical
Center School of Medicine and the University of New England’s
College of Pharmacy this September, Maine — and more generally
Northern New England — soon stand to benefit in their
efforts to address anticipated shortages in primary care physicians
and pharmacists.
Students in the Tufts/MMC program will study for two years
at Tufts, then transition to one or a combination of four teaching
sites in Maine for their third and fourth years. In addition to
Maine Medical Center, the following three hospitals have also
become partners in this prestigious program: Franklin Memorial
Hospital, Mid Coast Hospital and Stephens Memorial Hospital.
Twenty-two of the program’s first 32 students were Mainers. The
school’s unique curriculum dubbed the “Maine track” will
emphasize rural practice.
Across the country, the number of students going into primary
care has dropped 51.8% since 1997, according to the American
Academy of Family Physicians. Which is why this new program is
so important to the region as the curriculum is specifically designed
to encourage participants to establish medical practices in the area.
Meanwhile, the University of New England welcomed its first
class of 100 students this September with a traditional White
Coat Ceremony, which included the students pledging the oath
of a pharmacist. When these students earn their Doctor of Pharmacy
degrees beginning in 2013, they will represent the fruits of
a concerted effort to address a shortage of pharmacists in the
state similar to that seen for primary care physicians.
Pharmacist shortages both locally and nationwide have been an
issue for a number of years with some pharmacies limiting hours
or temporarily closing “on short notice” according to reports by
the Boston Globe and The Kaiser Health Policy Report.
“We congratulate Tufts University, Maine Medical Center and
the University of New England for leading these important
efforts to improve the care environment here in Maine and
beyond,” said Terrance J. Sheehan, MD, President and CEO of
Medical Mutual. “Hopefully these programs can establish the
necessary momentum and interest among our region’s young
people to pursue careers as primary care physicians and pharmacists,
as the need for bright, talented and well-trained individuals
in these fields has been steadily increasing.”