MU School of Medicine awarded $16 million to improve physician shortages in rural Missouri

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The federal Health Resources and Services Administration has awarded the University of Missouri's School of Medicine $16 million to help train new doctors to work in parts of rural Missouri.

According to a news release sent Wednesday, MU says there's a severe staffing shortage of primary care doctors in rural communities across the state.

The new funding will go toward the School of Medicine's Rural Scholars Program, which supports 10 rural training sites, funds rural clerkship training and electives and offers rural immersion experiences, according to the release.

The release says more than a third of Missourians live in rural areas and more people over the age of 65 live in rural communities than in urban ones.

Kathleen Quinn, who leads the School of Medicine's rural programs, says doctors who train in rural settings are more likely to practice there.

According to the news release, 50% of medical students who study under these rural programs end up practicing as physicians in rural communities.