22-04-2025
Mayo Clinic med students branch out to learn directly from rural communities
Apr. 22—ROCHESTER — A group of first-year medical students at the Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine in Rochester has been learning directly from Minnesota Farm Bureau members about how to connect with and meet the needs of people living in rural communities.
The education around rural healthcare, called the Rural Medicine Initiative, is offered through the medical school in partnership with the Minnesota Foundation for Agriculture and the Zumbro Valley Medical Society.
The partnership comes at a time when the U.S. is facing a critical shortage of primary care physicians in rural areas. While overall medical school positions increased by more than 30% from 2002 to 2017, the number of medical students from rural backgrounds decreased by 28%, so they made up only 4.3% of the incoming medical student body in 2017, according to a study published in Health Affairs.
The Minnesota Foundation for Agriculture, which is separate from the Minnesota Farm Bureau and funded through partnerships and private donations, invested $5,000 toward the initiative in 2024, hoping it can help recruit and train a future rural healthcare workforce.
Starting last year, a group of medical students had several interactions with farm bureau members on farms in Southeast Minnesota as well as at implement dealers, at panel discussions and more.
According to a press release from Minnesota Farm Bureau, students gained an "intimate perspective on what farmers and ranchers face daily—from the occupational hazards and ag-related injuries to the rural mental health crisis, healthcare accessibility and even the social and emotional barriers that can keep farmers and ranchers from visiting or trusting doctors."
The medical students were also at the Minnesota Farm Bureau's annual meeting to conduct health screenings.
"I've been so appreciative of the energy behind the people who have been willing to engage with me," said Liz Palmi, a first-year medical student. "The passion that these leaders in the community have for serving the people in their community and identifying the needs behind that has been really inspiring to me and helped me see the need through their eyes as well."
