The Indiana State Medical Association has long been a supporter of the Graduate Medical Education (GME) Board and its efforts to meet the increasing demand for primary care physicians in Indiana. 

Created by Indiana lawmakers in 2015, the GME Board is tasked with expanding graduate medical education residency opportunities across the state. The 10-member board is administered, staffed and led by the Indiana Commission for Higher Education.

ISMA supports the GME Board’s efforts by advocating for continued expansion and additional funding for residency programs in Indiana. In fact, ISMA successfully advocated to increase GME funding for fiscal year 2022-23 by a total of $9 million in biennial appropriations, with $4 million coming in fiscal year 2022 and $5 million in fiscal year 2023. This represents an increase of $1 million over the previous state budget allocation.

Since its inception, the GME Board has awarded over $20 million through the state’s GME Expansion Plan, funding over 100 new resident physician positions and increasing the number of residency slots in Indiana by more than 330 – while providing more than 176,000 hours of direct primary care to Hoosiers. 

“The Commission’s most recent data show that Indiana will need an additional 817 primary care physicians by 2030,” said Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education Teresa Lubbers. “Continued investment in the state’s physician pipeline is critical to meeting this increasing need, especially in rural and underserved areas.” 

Thanks to the GME Board, resident physicians have been added throughout Indiana – including Southwest Indiana (Jasper, Evansville, Vincennes), Greater Lafayette, Central Indiana and Northeast Indiana (Fort Wayne). Future residency expansion plans include additions in Central Indiana, Southwest Indiana and Northwest Indiana.

Nearly 70% of physicians end up practicing medicine near the location of their residency programs, meaning those added through the GME Expansion Plan increase positive health outcomes and quality of life directly in the community. 

Additionally, physicians contribute directly to their community’s economic impact. Each physician’s practice within the community on average creates an additional six to seven jobs, and every primary care physician that is added within an underserved area generates a $3.6 million economic impact to the region.

 

	Measuring Progress: Greater Lafayette More than $2 million awarded to the Indiana University School of Medicine Arnett Family Medicine Residency program at Indiana University Health Arnett Hospital for residency development and expansion and residency program development 15 new resident physician positions 40 new residency slots in family medicine “The Arnett Family Medicine Residency has been greatly impacted through funding for residency program expansion. This funding has allowed our new program to obtain training items such as simulation equipment, point of care ultrasounds and other materials which has made us a competitive residency site much sooner than we would have been without it.” Travis Dams, MD Arnett Family Medicine Residency, Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor of Family Medicine  “I decided to sign with IU Health Arnett Hospital after residency because of the close-knit and supportive environment that is currently present at the location. By training at Arnett, I have had the opportunity to work closely with amazing specialists, and I wanted to continue to have and build the great relationships for myself and my patients.”  Vinusiya Shanmugalingam, MD Arnett Family Medicine Residency, Resident Physician Measuring Progress: Southwestern Indiana More than $11 million awarded to the Southwestern Indiana Graduate Medical Education Consortium (SIGMEC) for residency expansion and residency program development 61 new resident physician positions 213 new residency slots in family medicine, psychiatry and internal medicine “I feel the (Psychiatry Residency in Vincennes Program) has benefited the community by providing access to services and really giving an opportunity to increase training in new services. It makes it easier to maintain expanded services as well, particularly in communities where only one doctor may provide a service, and if he (or she) isn’t available, that service can’t be done. Residency can provide more consistency.” Allie Thomas-Fannin, MD Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry (Source: https://www.in.gov/che/files/220217_RELEASE_GMEB-Expansion1.pdf)