05-03-2025
Conservative rural Idaho doctor says WWAMI dissolution feels ‘political'
My WWAMI medical school and residency education gave me the ability to practice rural, full-spectrum family medicine, writes guest columnist Lance Hansen. (Getty Images)
I am a fiscally and socially conservative family physician practicing at Franklin County Medical Center in Preston, Idaho. I was raised on a potato farm west of Blackfoot, and my family has been rooted in Idaho agriculture for generations. Growing up, my family physician was WWAMI graduate Dr. Kirt McKinlay.
I'm writing because I am concerned that politics are clouding sound judgement when it comes to House Bill 176, a bill that would sever medical education ties with the University of Washington School of Medicine. With a proven track record of excellent medical education and a commitment to Idaho, why are we entertaining the notion of cutting ties of a 53-year-old partnership with the WWAMI program for a lot of uncertainty and unknown?
Idaho doctor: WWAMI is 'vital' for state's students, residents and health care
With the way that House Bill 176 is structured/worded, there are only a few possibilities and a lot of uncertainty. To me this feels very political rather than rational.
As a graduate of the WWAMI program, I never participated in or felt pressured to learn anything about abortion or physician assisted suicide. The education at the University of Washington School of Medicine is outstanding; WWAMI is continually ranked as one of the top medical schools in the nation for primary care. When I went through medical school, there were only 18 WWAMI slots for Idaho medical students and today there are 40. I know, firsthand, that the mission of the University of Washington School of Medicine is to truly prepare physicians to serve the WWAMI region.
Since 2012, I have volunteered thousands of hours teaching WWAMI medical students and serving on the Idaho WWAMI admissions committee where we selected applicants who were committed to rural Idaho and its health care needs. I have never been paid for any of this. I simply have a great appreciation for what the WWAMI program has accomplished and a strong confidence in what it will accomplish in the future.
More than half of Idaho WWAMI medical students choose to practice here, which is better than the national average of 39-40%. When you include all WWAMI medical students, more than 70% end up in Idaho. Training in Idaho entices students from Alaska, Montana, Washington and Wyoming to stay here.
My medical career started in Bear Lake County where I practiced for 11 years. It's difficult to find physicians who are comfortable with practicing in these truly rural environments without specialist support nearby. My WWAMI medical school and residency education gave me the ability to practice rural, full-spectrum family medicine – including obstetrics with C sections, colonoscopy/EGD, emergency medicine, intensive care, hospital medicine, clinic treatment and more. WWAMI provides the rural emphasis, exposure, opportunities, knowledge and confidence necessary for me, and other graduates, to serve people in rural areas.
When I came to Franklin County Medical Center two years ago, it had been recruiting for more than four years. For smaller hospitals like ours, it is more cost effective to have broadly trained family physicians like those that come out of the WWAMI program with rural experience. Our family medicine training also means patients are likely to have better outcomes because they don't have to travel longer distances for medical care.
One of my favorite parts of medicine is participating in the miracle of life when newborn babies come into this world. Most people I know love babies — so I ask that our state lawmakers not throw out the baby with the bathwater on this issue of medical education in Idaho.
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